Cartoon Race of Champions
by SuperBlackdeth666
Summary: Taking place about a month after the end of the last NASCAR Cartoon Cup Series season, this new all-star racing event features all sorts of characters from all over the world squaring off for supremacy!
1. Introduction

** After two seasons of cartoon characters fighting each other almost literally to the death in the NASCAR Cartoon Cup Series, a new series has emerged, featuring characters from all walks of life - the Cartoon Race of Champions!**

** It is based on the real-life Race of Champions, which is an international all-star motorsports event held at the end of each year, and the only such event to showcase drivers from NASCAR, IndyCar, Formula 1, sports cars, touring cars, rally cars, motorcycles, you name it! The Cartoon Race of Champions will have a similar premise, with characters from all sorts of nationalities duking it out for world supremacy!**

** Here's how it's going to work; the event will take place in a large stadium, with a track built on its field. The track features two parallel courses that cross over each other at the midway point so that they both ultimately go the same distance around. Each round in the event will be a one-on-one two-lap race.**

** Now here's what makes this event really special; the event will be featuring teams of two drivers, each team representing a nation. While the real-life Race of Champions has 16 drivers on 8 teams (at least), the Cartoon Race of Champions will have double that amount, with 32 drivers on 16 teams representing 16 different nations from all the major continents!**

** And here they are;**

**Australia (Guy "SheZow" Hamdon and Wallabee Beatles)**

**Brazil (Jose Carioca and Raimundo Pedrosa)**

**Canada (Nikki Wong and Artha Penn)**

**Celtic Nations (Fanny Fulbright and Groundskeeper Willie)**

**China (Amy Wong and Chang Wufei)**

**Egypt (Marik Ishtar and Ishizu Ishtar)**

**England (Nigel Uno and Ferb Fletcher)**

**France (Aelita Stones and Jeremy Belpois)**

**Germany (Heinz Doofenshmirtz and Zigfried von Schroeder)**

**India (Apu Nahasapeemapetilon and Baljeet Tjinder)**

**Italy (Will Vandom and Bloom)**

**Japan (Ash Ketchum and Yugi Moto)**

**Mexico (Manny Rivera and Rikochet)**

**Peru (Emperor Kuzco and Kronk)**

**Scandinavia (Skwisgaar Skwigelf and Toki Wartooth)**

**United States (Homer Simpson and Edd)**

** Now then; even though this year's real-life Race of Champions is to be held in Bangkok, Thailand, the Cartoon Race of Champions will not be, since there is no team representing that particular country. Instead, it will be held at Saltlake Stadium in Calcutta, India; it has twice the seating capacity as Rajamagala Stadium in Bangkok, AND they'll have a team representing them!**

** As for the event itself, the actual Race of Champions will not occur right away; there will first be a Nations' Cup, in which the two drivers from each team will be working together to win for their nation. The teams will be split into four groups of four teams each. In this group stage, each team will face off against each other team in its own group twice each; once with each driver.**

** After the group stage, the top two teams from each group will make it to the knockout stage - each round in this series will be best two out of three. We'll start with the quarterfinals; the winners there proceed to the semifinals; the winners there go to the finals while the losers go to the 3rd-place round. And of course, whoever wins the finals will win the Nations' Cup!**

** Then comes the actual Race of Champions, which will be every driver for themselves. Its group stage will have the individual drivers put into eight groups of four drivers each, with each driver facing off with each other driver in their group once each.**

** Then, of course, when that's done, the top two drivers from each group will proceed to the knockout stage, starting with the round of 16. The winners there will go on to the quarterfinals, and from there to the semifinals, with the losers in that round going to the 3rd-place round, and the winners going on to the finals. And whichever driver wins in the finals will be crowned Champion of Champions!**

** Alright, now that that's all been explained, stay tuned for the opening ceremonies...!**


	2. Opening Ceremonies

In Calcutta, India, in Saltlake Stadium, it is a night as full of pandemonium as it has ever been. The first-ever Cartoon Race of Champions is to be held here; an international all-star motorsports event bringing together cartoon characters from all sorts of nationalities from all of the major continents around the world to face off. Some have already established names for themselves in cartoon racing, and others have not yet made their talents known, but either way, they are all here for one goal; to become Champion of Champions!

It is now the night of the event's opening ceremonies. All of the 120,000 seats in Saltlake Stadium are packed; not a single one is left unoccupied. Fans from all over the world have gathered to this stadium to cheer on their favorite drivers and nations; while there are flags of all the 16 nations in the event being waved, the majority of the fans here are waving Indian flags, cheering on their home nation and their two representative drivers; Apu Nahasapeemapetilon and Baljeet Tjinder - while Apu has not yet made a name for himself in cartoon racing, Baljeet has carved out a niche as the crew chief for NASCAR Cartoon Cup Series star Ferb Fletcher, who is also racing in this event, representing England alongside fellow Cartoon Cup Series driver Nigel Uno.

Right now, in an adjacent parking lot that has been set up in the pit area, is where the Champions are all congregating, waiting for the team introductions. In the area with them are all of the cars that each team will drive, including a set of generic Race of Champions buggies - one for each team to drive around the stadium when they are introduced. The drivers themselves are currently passing the time with casual small-talk amongst each other.

We'll first look at Homer Simpson and Edd. Hailing from the NASCAR Cartoon Cup Series, they are the first two drivers to have won the series championship, with Homer being the series's first champion, and Edd being the current defending champion. Naturally, this success in America's premier racing series has led to them representing the United States in the Cartoon Race of Champions. Right now, the two are casually chatting, with Homer flanked by his wife Marge and kids Bart and Lisa, and Edd flanked by his best friends and fellow NASCAR drivers Ed and Eddy, and his girlfriend Nazz.

"These Indian fans make me laugh!" Homer scoffs. "I mean, Apu's a good guy - I've been shopping at his Kwik-E Mart as long as I can remember. But he and that dork Baljeet both are gonna come up empty, because you and me both, Double D, are gonna show them and everyone else what's up!"

"Yes, it is a great honor to have been selected for this world event," Edd muses. "But you forget - after the Nations' Cup comes the actual Race of Champions. It'll be every driver for themselves then, and who knows - you and I may end up going at it at some point."

"Yeah, and when it does," Eddy chips in, "Double D will crush you!"

"Oh, don't listen to them, Homey," Marge croons as she slings an arm around her husband. "I know you'll come through, just like you did when you won the first Cartoon Cup Series title."

"Hey, my Double D is tougher than he looks!" Nazz shoots back, slinging an arm around Double D. "He proved it just last season."

"Pfft!" scoffs Bart. "That's only because most of the other Chasers crashed out of the last race!"

"Ooh! Ooh, like in Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby!" Ed marvels.

"Well, the final wreck in that movie was a lot bigger," Lisa explains, "but yeah, you do have a point."

"Alright, alright, easy!" Edd steps in. "Let's save the heat for the actual Race of Champions - for now, Homer, you and I are teammates. And you're forgetting, Homer, that racecar drivers are all friends off the track."

"I know THAT!" Homer smirks. "Like I told you, you and I both are gonna show everyone else what's up!" With that, he grabs hold of Edd and pulls him into a hearty noogie; Bart, Lisa and Eddy all roll their eyes as Edd can't help but giggle.

Now we'll look at the group of kids collectively known as the Kids Next Door; this collective includes Nigel Uno, a star driver in the Cartoon Cup Series, representing England in this event, along with Cartoon Cup Series crew chief Wally Beatles, representing Australia, and Fanny Fulbright, representing the Celtic Nations, being of Irish nationality. Also here to cheer them on are Hoagie Gilligan, a fellow NASCAR driver, his girlfriend Abigail Lincoln, Wally's girlfriend Kuki Sanban (who's also cheering on Japan), Nigel's girlfriend Rachel McKenzie, and Fanny's boyfriend Patton Drilovsky.

"This right here," Nigel proclaims, "is yet another reason why I'm proud to be British. If it weren't for that, I likely wouldn't be driving in this event, you know, since I never did win the Cartoon Cup."

"Yeah, well there are a bunch of characters here that we haven't heard of," explains Hoagie. "It's all a part of this thing being a world event, you know."

"And besides," coos Rachel, "you could still win a championship here, and prove everyone wrong." As she affectionately kisses Nigel on the cheek, Wally rolls his eyes.

"Not if I beat you first," he smirks. "I'm, like, the toughest of us all, as tough as the Australian Outback. That's what's gonna get me the victory over everyone else, including you, Nigel!"

"Don't make me laugh!" Fanny shoots back. "I'm driving in this thing too, remember?"

"Oh, suddenly I'm worried," Kuki breaks in. "I mean, I'm all for these races and competition, but a part of me is just praying that this doesn't drive us apart!"

"Kuki, please," reassures Abigail. "We may be allied to different countries - the U.S., England, Ireland, Australia, and Japan... but I just know we'll all still be friends!"

"Well said, Abby," smiles Hoagie, kissing Abigail on the lips.

"Yeah, you're right," says Wally. "The racing never did drive us apart in NASCAR. Hell, it even brought us closer together!" As soon as he says that, everyone laughs at him as Kuki suddenly kisses him hard on the lips.

"Well I know you'll do wonderful, Wally," she coos. "And Japan, too," she adds under her breath.

...

"Champions, proceed to your buggies!" announces an RoC official. "We'll be introducing you shortly." And so the drivers all proceed to their buggies; each one comes with the flags of the drivers' nations for one to wave around while the other drives around the stadium. All of the buggies line up in front of the pass that leads into the stadium; they are all lined up alphabetically, putting the Australian team of Guy Hamdon and Wally Beatles in the very front.

"And now," says the stadium announcer to the cheering fans in the stands of Saltlake Stadium, presenting your Champions! Introducing first, representing Australia, Guy Hamdon and Wallabee Beatles!"

Didgeridoo music plays on the stadium's PA systems as Guy Hamdon drives the buggy with authority into the stadium. Wally Beatles sits arrogantly in the passenger's seat, waving the Australian flag for all to see. As Guy drives two laps around the stadium, their fans wave their own Australian flags, along with the occasional poster displaying the phrase "G'day, mates!" making Guy and Wally both feel a great sense of pride for being chosen to represent their country in this manner.

When they're done, Guy wheels the buggy out of the stadium and back into the pit area, and the stadium announcer declares, "And now, representing Brazil, Jose Carioca and Raimundo Pedrosa!"

Jose, the parrot, lights a cigar as he accelerates the buggy into the stadium. Cheers erupt through the stands and samba music plays on the speakers as Raimundo clutches the green, yellow and blue flag of Brazil, waving it high and proud for their fans as Jose drives all the way around the stadium, letting everyone know that they're there, and that their presence there is everything but a fluke.

As Jose and Raimundo finish their parade and return to the pit area, the announcer roars in his booming voice, "And now, representing Canada, Nikki Wong and Artha Penn!"

While the sarcastic, rebellious teenager Nikki Wong angrilly wheels the buggy into the stadium, "Canadian Idiot" by "Weird Al" Yankovic blares on the stadium's speakers as the Dragon Booster, Artha Penn, proudly waves the red-and-white Canadian flag all the way around the stadium in front of the roaring crowd.

They then retreat back into the pit area as the stadium announcer proclaims, "And now, representing the Celtic Nations, "Fanny Fulbright and Groundskeeper Willie!"

"FER SCOTLAND!" Willie bellows as he madly wheels the buggy into the stadium, steering with one hand and waving the Scottish flag with the other. Bagpipe music plays on the stadium speakers as Fanny waves the Irish flag from the passenger seat and Willie drives around the stadium, waving the flag of Scotland and crying out, "Screw ye, India! Me nation used to own yers, and when this whole thing is over, we'll have taken in back!"

"And now," says the announcer as Willie and Fanny exit the stadium, "representing China, Amy Wong and Chang Wufei!"

Chang Wufei, the Gundam pilot, calmly drives the buggy into the stadium as Amy Wong screams things like "Yeah!" and "WOO-HOO!" enthustically waving the Chinese flag in plain view of everyone from the passenger's seat. Indigenous Chinese music blasts on the speakers as Chang drives the car around the stadium and back into the pit area.

"And now, representing Egypt, Marik and Ishizu Ishtar!"

The song "Egypt," by Mercyful Fate plays on the speakers as Ishizu Ishtar calmly drives into the stadium. His brother Marik laughs maniacally from the passenger seat, clutching both his Millennium Rod and the black, white and red flag of Egypt. "You shall all bow before us! MWA HA HA HA HA HA!" he cackles.

As Ishizu finishes their laps and pulls back into the pits, the stadium announcer says, "And now, representing England, Nigel Uno and Ferb Fletcher!"

"YEAH!" Nigel yells as he accelerates into the stadium. Ferb Fletcher waves the white flag with the red cross that represents England as fans in the stands wave English and UK flags and the British anthem "God Save The Queen" blasts on the stadium speakers and Nigel drives all the way around the stadium for everyone to see them.

As they pull back into the pits, the announcer calls, "And now, representing France, Aelita Stones and Jeremy Belpois!"

More cheers erupt from the stands as Jeremy Belpois accelerates into the stadium. Aelita Stones rides in the passenger seat; as Jeremy drives around the stadium, she waves the French flag high and proud with one hand and launches energy blasts into the air that explode into fireworks, inciting cheers from all the fans, even those not rooting for them.

"And now," proclaims the stadium announcer as Aelita and Jeremy pull back into the pits, "representing Germany, Heinz Doofenshmirtz and Zigfried von Schroeder!"

German flags wave from various parts of the stands as Zigfried wheels the buggy into the stadium. "Deutchland Uber Alles" plays on the stadium speakers as Heinz Doofenshmirtz waves the German flag from the passenger's seat. "WE SHALL RULE OVER YOU ALL!" he thunders as Zigfried drives around before pulling back into the pits.

"AND NOW..." roars the announcer, more loudly than before. "REPRESENTING YOUR INDIA, APU NAHASAPEEMAPETILON, AAAAND BALJEET TJINDER!"

The crowd erupts into a raucous roar, thundering several times more loudly than before. Indian flags sprout up from all throughout the stands as Baljeet drives the buggy into the stadium. Apu, feeling prouder than ever to be Indian, waves the Indian flag for all to see from the buggy's passenger seat; with every turn the buggy makes, Apu salutes his home crowd, saying, "Thank you, come again!"

It takes several minutes for the crowd to calm back down after Apu and Baljeet leave the stadium. When they do, the stadium announcer continues on as if nothing happened, "And now, representing Italy, Will Vandom and Bloom!"

Will Vandom accelerates their buggy into the stadium, steering with one hand and shooting lightning into the air with the other one. Bloom rides in the passenger seat, waving the red, white and green flag of Italy for everyone in Saltlake Stadium to see as Will drives all the way around the stadium before returning to the pits.

"And now, representing Japan, Ash Ketchum and Yugi Moto!"

"Pikachu, use Thunderbolt! Up into the sky!" commands Ash as he drives the buggy into the stadium.

"Pika... CHU!" Pikachu, riding on the rear of the buggy, launches a jet of lightning into the sky. Obnoxious J-pop music blasts on the stadium's speakers and Yugi Moto waves the Japanese flag from the passenger's seat as Ash continues to drive around, with Pikachu still shooting lightning into the air and causing everyone to cheer for him, if for no other reason, the spectacular light show.

"And now, representing Mexico, Manny Rivera and Rikochet!"

As Rikochet wheels their buggy into the stadium, Manny Rivera, using his grappling-hook ability, extends his hand way up into the sky. In this hand, he clutches the red, white and green flag of Mexico, waving it really high up for all to see as salsa music plays on the stadium's speakers. Rikochet drives two laps around the stadium before retreating back into the pits.

"And now, representing Peru, Emperor Kuzco, and Kronk!"

"Uh, yeah. Go Peru," Kronk says sheepishly as he waves the Peruvian flag around. "Yeah! We're gonna win this thing for sure, Kronk!" Kuzco swaggers as he drives their buggy around the stadium, with their fans cheering as indigenous Inca music plays on the stadium speakers.

"And now, representing Scandinavia, Skwisgaar Skwigelf and Toki Wartooth!"

The walls of the stadium and the ears of the fans are suddenly pummeled by blistering death metal music as Skwisgaar Skwigelf and Toki Wartooth make their entrance. Fans are frantically covering their ears, trying to shield themselves from the brutal music as Skwisgaar drives around, steering with one hand and waving the Swedish flag with the other. Toki, meanwhile, waves the flag of Norway.

Then, they pull back into the pit area, leaving but one more team to be introduced.

"And finally," proclaims the stadium announcer with anticipation, "representing the United States, NASCAR Cartoon Cup Series champions Homer Simpson, and Edd!"

"We shall proceed then," asserts Edd as he puts his foot down and accelerates the buggy into the stadium.

The song "America, Fuck Yeah" blares on the stadium speakers. Some American fans in the stands cheer for them, but these are drowned out by the sounds of harsh boos from everyone else. But this does nothing to dampen Homer's spirits; as Edd drives around, Homer waves the American flag and its red, white and blue, crying out, "U.S.A! U.S.A! U.S.A! Try and stop US! U.S.A!"

And so, after they complete their laps, Homer and Edd retreat into the pit area. As they exit their buggy to go prepare their race cars, as everyone else is doing, the crowd starts to applaud with anticipation, looking forward to the imminent start of the Nations' Cup...


	3. Nations Cup (Group A)

** Well, we are just about set to head on into the group stage of the Nations Cup! First, I'll clarify exactly how the racetrack works.**

** As mentioned in the introduction, the track is a parallel course; the two cars will take off from the start/finish line and head into the first turn; the inner course takes a sharp left hairpin while the outer course takes a sweeping left, followed by the hard right and then a hard left right after that. The two tracks then head across the middle of the field, crossing over each other, with the outer course going on a bridge over the inner course. The outer course then becomes the inner course as it takes a sharp hairpin left back to the start/finish line, while the inner course becomes the outer course, taking a sweeping left, then a hard right, and then another sweeping left back to the start/finish line. The two cars will then run their 2nd lap - this time on the configuration opposite the one they did on lap one, and the car that makes it to the start/finish line after the 2nd lap wins.**

** As for the cars, there will be several different cars used in the competition, but each individual race will have the two characters driving the same car, so that they are on even footing. The exact cars driven by the different characters will vary from race to race, and will include;**

**Audi R8**

**Volkswagen Scirocco**

**Ariel Atom**

**Toyota GT86**

**RoC Car**

**KTM X-Bow**

**Euro NASCAR**

** And finally, here's how all the teams will be organized for the group stage;**

**GROUP A**

** Australia**

** Germany**

** Peru**

** United States**

**GROUP B**

** Brazil**

** England**

** Japan**

** Scandinavia**

**GROUP C**

** Egypt**

** France**

** India**

** Mexico**

**GROUP D**

** Canada**

** Celtic Nations**

** China**

** Italy**

** Let's go!**

**...**

The first two-round race in Group A between Australia and the United States is ready to go. On the inner course is Homer Simpson for the USA, and on the outer course is Wally Beatles for Australia; both are behind the wheel of Euro NASCAR cars - the version of the stock car used in the NASCAR Whelen EuroSeries. The fans in the stands applaud in anticipation as Homer and Wally both wait at the line, revving their engines until...

The flagman waves the green flag and Homer and Wally take off, their engines echoing through the confines of Saltlake Stadium.

"D'OH!" says Homer as he takes the hairpin turn on his end rather wide. Wally, on the other hand, gets through the sweeping turns on his end pretty well, which puts him in the lead as they cross each other.

But Wally's fortunes change as he botches the hairpin turn, almost spinning out and crashing, and causing him to go "Aw, crud!" while Homer nails the sweeping turns on his end.

Wally still has the lead as they start lap 2. He manages to negotiate the next hairpin turn rather nicely, as does Homer with his sweeping turns. Wally maintains a slight lead going on the crossover.

But he ends up messing up the next S-turn, going wide and having to slow down more than necessary. He manages to get the final turn right, but unfortunately, Homer does the same with his hairpin turn, allowing him to slip ahead and take the checkered flag for this round.

"WOO-HOO!" Homer beams.

"Crud!" Wally pounds his fist as he crosses the line after Homer.

They exit the track for the pit area, and with the United States 1-0 over Australia, their other two drivers come onto the track and stop right at the start/finish line. On the inner course is Guy Hamdon for Australia, and on the outer course is Edd for the USA. These two are driving Volkswagen Sciroccos - 3-door hatchback coupes sporting in-line 4-cylinder 225hp engines, 6-speed automatic transmissions and front-wheel drive.

The green flag drops, and Guy and Edd both step on it. Both take their respective first turns really well, and are dead even at the crossover. But then Guy botches the subsequent hairpin and almost loses it, whilst Edd nails the sweeping turn on his end, allowing him to take the lead heading into the 2nd lap.

"I'm liking our probabilities," Edd smirks to himself as he wheels his Volkswagen through the hairpin turn with ease. Meanwhile, Guy Hamdon nails the sweeping turns on his end, but he is still behind.

"Not good, not good!" Edd yelps as he almost spins out in the hairpin. Fortunately, he's able to get back going, but Guy Hamdon nails his last sweeping turn, making it a very close race to the checkered flag...

"Whew, I held on! That was close," Edd says as he catches his breath, having been scored the winner by a mere bumper over Guy Hamdon.

**GROUP A STANDINGS**

** United States (2-0)**

** Australia (0-2)**

** Germany (0-0)**

** Peru (0-0)**

With the United States having swept Australia, it is now Germany and Peru's turn to trade paint. On the inner course for this round is Kronk for Peru, and on the outer course is Heinz Doofenshmirtz, and they're both behind the wheel of KTM X-Bows; open-cockpit, ultra-light sports cars designed to be equally adept on the road and on the track, boasting turbo-charged Audi engines with 240hp.

The green flag waves, and Kronk and Doofenshmirtz take off. Kronk ends up almost crashing through the first turn and Doofenshmirtz nearly loses it in the second part of his sweeping turn, and so they both end up nearly even headed over the crossover.

Both drivers negotiate their 2nd turns much better, and they end up just about even headed into lap 2, with Doofenshmirtz maintaining a slight edge.

"Let's see Perry the Platypus do this!" he smirks as he swings his X-Bow through the hairpin perfectly. Kronk, meanwhile, makes it through his sweeping turn just as nicely, and they stay even through the crossover.

But then, the crowd gasps as Doofenshmirtz brakes too late going into the next sharp chicane part of the sweeping turn, spinning out and almost crashing, smoke billowing from his tires. Kronk, noticing this, decides to take it easy through the hairpin, getting through without crashing, and taking the checkered flag as Doofenshmirtz just now gets his car back in line.

"CURSE YOU, KRONK!" he shouts out as he goes through the last turn and crosses the line as the loser of this round.

When that's done, they leave the track, and their teammates take to the track. On the inner course this time is Zigfried von Schroeder for Germany, and on the outer course is Emperor Kuzco for Peru; these two are driving Ariel Atoms - open-wheeled, open cockpit sports cars with rear-wheel drive, Yokohama tires, and Honda VTEC engines pumping out 245hp.

Kuzco and Zigfried take off as the green flag turns them lose. As Kuzco botches the sweeping turn just a little bit, Zigfried does a better job negotiating the hairpin, and so he takes a slight lead headed into the crossover.

But then Zigfried badly botches the first tight chicane on the next sweeping section - it takes a good second for him to get reorganized. Kuzco, seeing this unfold clearly from his open-cockpit, laughs as he swings his Atom through his hairpin, taking the lead going into lap 2.

Zigfried handles the next sweeping turns much better this time - however, Kuzco handles his hairpin equally well, allowing him to maintain the lead headed into the crossover.

The crowd gasps as Kuzco suddenly loses it in the chicane - the exact spot where Zigfried lost it on lap 1; only worse this time. Kuzco does manage to get himself re-situated, steering the car back on track, but Zigfried takes his last hairpin turn perfectly, taking the checkered flag for Germany.

"DAMN!" jabs Kuzco. "He threw off my groove!"

**GROUP A STANDINGS**

** United States (2-0)**

** Germany (1-1)**

** Peru (1-1)**

** Australia (0-2)**

As Emperor Kuzco leaves the course, Zigfried von Schroeder stays on the track, still on the inner course, still in his Ariel Atom. Then, pulling onto the outer course to race him in this round, is Edd, for the USA. He is now driving an identical Ariel Atom, so that they are evenly matched.

The green flag then waves; Edd gets off the line better than Zigfried, and while Zigfried has some trouble with his hairpin turn, Edd has no such problem in his sweeping turn. "I'm liking our probabilities again!" he says, licking his chops as he goes through the crossover with a solid lead.

But Edd then brakes a little late going through the impending hairpin, being forced to go up against the wall at a slower speed than what he would like. While Zigfried gets through his sweeping turn much better, he closes down the gap on Edd, but Edd still maintains the lead entering lap 2.

Both drivers negotiate their next turns rather well, and so neither side shifts momentum headed through the crossover with Edd maintaining a slight lead...

"NEIN!" Zigfried suddenly spins out in the final hairpin turn, doing a full 180 in his Ariel Atom. He struggles to get his car back around, having to go between forward and reverse constantly, only getting across well over half a minute after Edd has crossed the finish line and won the round.

Edd and Zigfried von Schroeder then leave the course, and on comes Heinz Doofenshmirtz on the outer course for Germany, and Homer Simpson on the inner course for the USA. This time, they are driving Toyota GT86's; compact two-door coupes sporting only a mere 147hp in their 4-cylinder boxer engines.

At the green flag, Homer and Doofenshmirtz put their pedals to the floor. Seeing as how these cars are easy to drive, being the slowest in the line-up, Homer and Doofenshmirtz have little trouble going through their first turns.

They have similar ease with their second turns, remaining nearly even heading into lap 2. "C'mon, baby, Homer needs a win!"

But then, just as Doofenshmirtz looks like he's going to nail the sweeping turn, he ends up sliding at an extreme angle through the chicane, and has to exert a great amount of effort to get the car straightened before it goes all the way around.

Hence, Homer Simpson takes a big lead headed into the final turns. He maintains control through his final hairpin, and takes the win.

"WOO-HOO!" proclaims Homer.

"CURSE YOU, HOMER SIMPSON!" complains Doofenshmirtz. "AND CURSE YOU, YOU STUPID CAR!"

**GROUP A STANDINGS**

** United States (4-0)**

** Germany (1-3)**

** Peru (1-1)**

** Australia (0-2)**

Emperor Kuzco and Guy Hamdon then take to the track, with Kuzco on the inner course, representing Peru, and Guy on the outer course, representing Australia. They are both driving the RoC Car - a buggy resembling the ones everyone drove in the opening ceremonies, except with just one seat instead of two, and packing a 170hp engine.

Guy gets the jump on Kuzco at the waving of the green flag, but this is equalized when Guy messes up on the chicane of his sweeping turn while Kuzco nails his hairpin perfectly, leaving them even going through the crossover.

"Ouch, dammit!" yells Kuzco as she scrapes the wall in the chicane, having taken it too wide. Guy, meanwhile, gets through his hairpin turn with ease, and reclaims the lead headed into lap 2.

It stays this way as Kuzco nails his sweeping turn and Guy nails his hairpin - Guy retains the lead headed through the crossover.

After that, nothing more happens that is interesting; both drivers get through unscathed and Guy Hamdon retains the lead up to the checkered flag, winning the round as Kuzco pounds his fist on the steering wheel of his car in disgust, unable to believe that he just lost again.

They exit the track, and Kronk and Wally Beatles drive on. They both line up at the start/finish line - Kronk on the outer course for Peru, and Wally on the inner course for Australia. Both are behind the wheel of Euro NASCAR cars.

Kronk gets the jump on Wally at the green flag. He retains this edge as he sweeps through his wide turn with ease; Wally gets his hairpin turn right as well, but Kronk holds onto the lead going through the crossover.

But Kronk then goes a little wide through his hairpin turn; Wally swings his Euro stock car through his sweeping corner with a performance some may describe as better than perfect, and he and Kronk are dead even headed into lap 2.

Wally then botches his subsequent hairpin turn slightly - just enough for Kronk to take back the edge as he swings perfectly through the sweeping turn on his end.

But then, after the crossover, Kronk ends up skidding through the impending chicane - a costly error a couple others have indeed made before him. He overcorrects and swings around again, and then, frantically adjusting the steering wheel, he finally gets it straightened.

But this allows Wally Beatles to make it across the finish line well before him, and so Australia completes the 2-0 sweep of Peru.

**GROUP A STANDINGS**

** United States (4-0)**

** Australia (2-2)**

** Germany (1-3)**

** Peru (1-3)**

As Wally Beatles drives off the course, triumph flowing through his veins, his teammate Guy Hamdon drives back onto the course, lining up on the outer course, and driving a KTM X-Bow. On the inner course is Zigfried von Schroeder, driving for Germany in an identical X-Bow.

The green flag turns them loose, and they both rocket off the line in a dead heat. They both manage near-flawless execution through their first two turns, staying even going through the crossover.

"NO! Dang it!" Guy exclaims as he spins almost 180 degrees in the ensuing hairpin. Zigfried, meanwhile, takes his sweeping turn really well, and takes the lead going into lap 2.

Both drivers once again execute the first turns really well on this lap - however it is Zigfried who retains the lead heading through the crossover.

"Oh for the love of God!" Guy Hamdon skids in the very last turn, turning 90 degrees more than he needed to. This allows Zigfried von Schroeder to zoom out ahead and take the win for Germany while Guy Hamdon finishes several seconds afterwards.

Wally Beatles and Heinz Doofenshmirtz then line up onto their places at the start/finish line; Wally is on the inner course while Doofenshmirtz is on the outer course, and both are piloting Volkswagen Sciroccos.

The green flag waves, with Heinz Doofenshmirtz getting the upper hand at first. However, he ends up botching the chicane at the end of his sweeping turn while Wally nails his hairpin turn; thus, they are even going through the crossover.

"For peed sake!" complains Doofenshmirtz as he skids through his hairpin, struggling to straighten up his Volkswagen. As for Wally, he gets through his sweeping curves just fine, and takes the lead headed into lap 2.

"Aw, COME ON!" Doofenshmirtz complains as he skids through the next hairpin as well, allowing Wally to take a larger lead heading into the crossover.

"All RIGHT! I did it!" With nothing else interesting happening, Wally Beatles crosses the line as the winner of this round, while Doofenshmirtz, who finishes seconds later, cries out, "CURSE YOU, WALLABEE BEATLES!"

**GROUP A STANDINGS**

** United States (4-0)**

** Australia (3-3)**

** Germany (2-4)**

** Peru (1-3)**

And now for the final two rounds, between the leaders, the United States, and Peru, who are tied for last place with Germany. The first two up are Edd and Kronk; Edd is on the inner course, Kronk is on the outer course, and they are both driving the generic RoC Car.

With his quick reflexes that he's learned from doing dangerous science experiments, Edd floors it right on the exact millisecond that the green flag is dropped. He swings it through the first hairpin with great finesse - Kronk, meanwhile, struggles through his first sweeping turn, allowing Edd to build a sizeable lead.

For the next two sets of turns, nothing interesting happens. Both drivers have little problems, and Edd maintains his lead.

"Oh... not good!" A collective gasp goes through the crowd as Edd suddenly skids through the final hairpin. He is forced to quickly, but delicately steer it to avoiding hitting the wall, which he does, and gets the car straightened again. But this allows Kronk to catch back up, running neck-and-neck with Edd on the way to the checkers...

"YES!" proclaims Edd as he keeps the United States's winning streak alive by a one-hundredth of a second over Kronk.

They then leave the track, and rolling out onto the track for the final round of Group A are Homer Simpson, for the United States, on the inner course, and Emperor Kuzco, for Peru, on the outer course. Both are driving the fastest, most powerful car in the Race of Champions arsenal - the Audi R8, a high-performance supercar boasting a 525hp engine, a six-speed, pneumatic-activated sport gearbox, rear-wheel drive, traction control, a double wishbone suspension and Michelin tires.

The green flag flies, and Homer and Kuzco take off like rockets as the roaring of their engines shakes the stadium's else interesting happens during the first lap; both go through with no troubles, and are even headed into lap 2.

"D'OH!" Homer brakes just a bit too late and skids through the chicane struggling a bit to straighten it - just enough for Kuzco to take the lead heading through the crossover.

"OH!" gasps the crowd as Kuzco spins out a full 180 degrees in the final chicane on his end. He's forced to put it in reverse and go through the rest of the chicane this way before he can turn it back around, put it back in drive and go the rest of the way to the finish line. But unfortunately, Homer has already gotten there.

"WOO-HOO!" cries Homer. "U.S.A! U.S.A! U.S.A!"

...

And so Kuzco and Homer both pull their Audis off the track and over into the pit area. As Kuzco hangs his head, Homer exits his car with great swagger rushing through him as his family rushes forward to congratulate him.

"Way to go, Dad!" Bart and Lisa exclaim as they rush into his father's arms, hugging him heartily. He releases them, and then Marge approaches.

"Aw, you did awesome out there, Homey!" she says as she pecks her husband on the lips.

"Well, this wouldn't be possible without you guys backing me up," Homer smiles upon them. Before his wife and kids can go "Awww!" another person approaches them.

"Homer!" It's Homer's teammate, Edd. "I don't know about you, but I think we both did a superb job advancing to the knockout stages. Great work!" With a smile, he offers Homer his hand to shake.

"You too, Double D," replies Homer as he takes Edd's hand... and pulls him into a big bearhug, crushing him like steels walls on a junkyard vehicle.

"I... I can't breathe!" Edd groans as Bart and Lisa laugh at him...

**GROUP A FINAL STANDINGS**

** United States (6-0)***

** Australia (3-3)***

** Germany (2-4)**

** Peru (1-5)**

** * - The United States and Australia advance to the quarterfinals.**

** Coming up next; Group B (Brazil, England, Japan and Scandinavia).**


	4. Nations Cup (Group B)

**In Group A, while Germany and Peru struggled, the United States swept everyone away while Australia just scraped by. Hence, the United States and Australia advance to the quarterfinals. Now, we move on to Group B, between Brazil, England, Japan and Scandinavia.**

Nigel Uno, driving for England, is scheduled as one of the first to compete, up against the Brazilian parrot Jose Carioca. He straps himself into a KTM X-bow, raring to go. Then, just as he starts up the engine, his girlfriend Rachel McKenzie shows up with a kiss on the lips for him.

"Good luck out there, Nigel," she says. "And be careful!"

"I love you, Rach!" Nigel calls back as he drives onto the track.

Nigel Uno lines up on the inner course, right alongside Jose Carioca on the outer course; Jose is behind an identical KTM X-Bow, looking at Nigel smugly as he puffs his cigar. This smug look makes Nigel even more determined to win...

The green flag is shown, and both drivers take off like a shot. Jose Carioca only slightly botches the first sweeping turn, but Nigel Uno nails his hairpin perfectly, and maintains a lead going through the crossover.

"Oh, blast!" says Nigel as he slides through the next chicane, losing valuable time. He still maintains a lead, but only a slight one as Jose Carioca gains ground on him going into lap 2.

The next set of turns both drivers get down pat, leaving Nigel Uno just barely ahead of Jose Carioca going through the crossover.

And then they both get through the last set of turns perfectly as well, leading to a drag race to the checkers...

"YES! GO NIGEY!" Rachel screams aloud from the pit area as Nigel is announced as having just barely beaten Jose and taken the win. Both drivers then return to the pits, with Nigel getting a big hug and big kiss from Rachel.

Meanwhile, Nigel's teammate Ferb Fletcher drives onto the track in an Ariel Atom. Lining up on the outer course, he will be going up against the Brazilian Raimundo Pedrosa on the inner course - a skilled martial artist with the ability to manipulate the air around him; he too is driving an Ariel Atom.

Both characters take off as the green flag drops. Both characters botch their first turns, but remain dead even through the crossover.

Then the crowd gasps as Raimundo Pedrosa has a nasty skid going through the final turn, leaving a trail of smoke billowing up from behind. This allows Ferb Fletcher to snatch the lead heading into lap 2.

Raimundo then gets through his next sweeping turns perfectly; Ferb messes up his hairpin somewhat, but still maintains a lead heading through the crossover. That's when Raimundo, as he crosses the bridge over Ferb, suddenly sticks his right hand out and starts waving it around in a way that seems to make no sense...

The crowd then reels as Ferb Fletcher suddenly spins out hard, going 270 degrees around, facefirst into the wall; Raimundo had just used his air manipulation powers to create a heavy gust of wind to buffer Ferb's car so that it lost control. Ferb backs it up and limps around the rest of the way as Raimundo Pedrosa crosses the finish line triumphant.

**GROUP B STANDINGS**

** Brazil (1-1)**

** England (1-1)**

** Japan (0-0)**

** Scandinavia (0-0)**

Next up are Ash Ketchum, representing Japan, and Toki Wartooth, representing Scandinavia (he himself is Norwegian) Ash, with Pikachu strapped in with him lines up on the inner course and Toki lines up on the outer course - both are behind the wheel of generic RoC Cars.

They floor it as the green flag flies, but Ash Ketchum suddenly has a nasty skid through his first hairpin. Pikachu cries out in displeasure as Ash works to get the car straightened up.

This enables Toki Wartooth to take the lead; he leads the rest of lap 1 and the first half of lap 2, with nothing weird happening until...

"Pikachu, use Thunderbolt!" As Toki starts to round his last turn, his RoC Car is suddenly blasted by a Thunderbolt shot at him from Pikachu, riding in Ash's car. The many thousands of volts are too much for the car to take, and it shorts out, limping across the homestretch trailing smoke as Ash zooms ahead, taking the win.

"We did it, Pikachu!" he proclaims.

"PIKA PIKA!"

After them come Yugi Moto, driving for Japan, and Skwisgaar Skwigelf, driving for Scandinavia (he himself is Swedish). Both are driving Toyota GT86's - Yugi's is on the outer course and Skwisgaar's is on the inner course.

Yugi gets the jump on Skwisgaar as the green flag drops. Skwisgaar's chances are further effected when he blows his first hairpin turn. "This ams dildos!" he complains as he sees Yugi shooting ahead of him through the crossover.

Both characters get their second turns down pat, with Yugi retaining the lead into lap 2. They get through their next set of turns equally well.

Then the final nail in the coffin comes down for Skwisgaar when he spins out in the final hairpin, sending up plumes of smoke as his car does a full 180. This enable Yugi to catch his breath as he crosses the finish line, winning without much effort having been needed.

**GROUP B STANDINGS**

** Japan (2-0)**

** Brazil (1-1)**

** England (1-1)**

** Scandinavia (0-2)**

Eager to go for another round, Yugi wheels his Toyota back around to the start/finish line on the inner course. Joining him on the outer course is the Brazilian Raimundo Pedrosa, driving an identical Toyota GT86.

Both cars take off under the guise of the green flag. They both nail their first turns and remain even through the crossover.

"Aw, shoot!" Yugi then brakes too late heading into the exit of the sweeping turn, forcing him to go real slow to avoid the wall. This allows Raimundo to take the lead entering lap 2.

The next set of turns proceeds with nothing interesting happening. That's when Yugi suddenly places some kind of card onto a very strange disc-like device he is wearing on his wrist, calling out, "I ACTIVATE MIRROR FORCE!"

Shocked gasps permeate from the crowd as a transparent blue-and-white force field appears right in front of Raimundo's car. Raimundo has no time to react as the force field catches his Toyota GT86 and sends it going in reverse, back the way it came. He hits the brakes hard, just barely keeping off the wall, then puts it back in forward and keeps going. Yugi, of course, has already crossed the line; no one other than the Japanese fans are cheering, as they are all too stunned by what's just happened.

When everyone's recovered from that, two Volkswagen Sciroccos come roaring out from the pits. One of them lines up on the outer course - this one has Ash Ketchum in the driver's seat for Japan and Pikachu in the passenger's seat. The other one is lined up on the inner course and has the Brazilian parrot Jose Carioca in the driver's seat.

The green flag flies, and Jose is caught by surprise as Ash lurches ahead of him. However, he ends up botching the first sweeping turn; Jose nails his hairpin turn and pulls up even with Ash going through the crossover.

But Jose ends up getting loose, as they say in NASCAR, through the first part of his next sweeping turn; Ash sneaks through his hairpin turn real well, and ends up in the lead heading into lap 2.

"One more lap and we've done it again, Pikachu!" Ash says as he wheels his Volkswagen perfectly through the second hairpin turn, with Jose Carioca still trailing him.

"Oh crap!" Ash groans as he winds up skidding through the ensuing chicane; he wheels the car around with all his might, just managing to keep it straight. Jose, meanwhile, nails his final hairpin turn, and it's a drag race...

"PIKA PIKA!" Pikachu calls out; Ash Ketchum as just beaten Jose Carioca by one-thousandth of a second, leaving Ash struggling to catch his breath...

**GROUP B STANDINGS**

** Japan (4-0)**

** Brazil (1-3)**

** England (1-1)**

** Scandinavia (0-2)**

The Englishman Ferb Fletcher then returns to the track, along with his Scandinavian opponent, Skwisgaar Skwigelf. They are to square off in the next round; both are driving Euro NASCAR cars, Ferb is lined up on the inner course and Skwisgaar Skwigelf is lined up on the outer course.

Skwisgaar gets the head start at the green flag; both he and Ferb botch their respective turns equally bad, skidding through them and losing speed. Skwisgaar manages to stay in the lead for the moment.

"Dildos!" Skwisgaar snaps as he ends up turning 90 degrees more than needed through the hairpin. He frantically turns hard right, straightening the car back up as Ferb soars into the lead entering lap 2.

But Ferb then messes up the chicane at the end of the next sweeping turn; while he does save it, this enable Skwisgaar to pull up even with him headed for their final turns...

Smoke then emerges from one of the outer course's chicanes - Skwisgaar has just spun around backwards coming out of that turn. He goes into the final corner in reverse, then he spins it around, puts it back in drives and hauls ass - Ferb, however, has already crossed the line victorious.

Ferb and Skwisgaar duck back into the pits, and out come Nigel Uno and Toki Wartooth, both driving Audi R8's. With Nigel lined up on the inner course and Toki lined up on the outer course, the green flag flies once more, and they're off.

Nigel and Toki both go through their first turns with ease, remaining even through the crossover. But then the stadium is filled with the sounds of squealing tires as Nigel and Toki both get incredibly loose in their respective second turns.

After some effort, they both recover and continue on, with Nigel holding a slight lead going into the 2nd lap. "NOS!" Toki cries as he spins out in the hairpin, going around 180 degrees.

This forces Toki to go through the crossover straightaway in reverse; when he gets to the next chicane, he wheels it back around, puts it in Drive and continues on through the final curve, where he sees Nigel waving to the fans as he has already won this race.

**GROUP B STANDINGS**

** Japan (4-0)**

** England (3-1)**

** Brazil (1-3)**

** Scandinavia (0-4)**

As Toki heads back to the pits to take a breather, his teammate Skwisgaar heads back onto the track, this time driving a generic RoC car. He lines up on the inner course, and on the outer course is Raimundo Pedrosa, driving an identical RoC Car. They take off in a dead heat when the green flag flies.

Raimundo ends up blowing the first sweeping turn, almost spinning out and allowing Skwisgaar to zoom ahead into the lead. Both characters then nail their 2nd turns, and so Skwisgaar is still leading going into lap 2.

But then, Skwisgaar ends up blowing the same turn that Raimundo blew on the first lap - he saves it, albeit just barely, and Raimundo evens up the score, as they are dead even going through the crossover.

With that, both characters nail their final turns, and they race to the checkered flag in a dead heat... by 99 hundredths of a second, Skwisgaar Skwigelf defeats Raimundo Pedrosa.

"Aw, man, I hope Kimiko was in the bathroom or something when that happened!" Raimundo worries as he pulls back into the pits. Meanwhile, his teammate Jose Carioca goes back onto the track, lining up on the outer course and driving a Toyota GT86. Alongside him on the inner course, driving an identical Toyota GT86, is the Norwegian Toki Wartooth, representing Scandinavia.

As Jose takes one more puff of his cigar, the green flag flies. Toki gets the jump on Jose going into the first turn, but he botches his first hairpin turn, enabling Jose to even things up going into the crossover.

The two characters maintain their line real well going into their 2nd turns. They go into lap two rather even, and stay this way whilst negotiating their third turns, which they also do quite nicely.

"NOS!" Toki cries as his car suddenly loses control and goes 180 degrees through the final hairpin. He gives up, puts it in reverse and goes the rest of the way to the finish line in reverse, with Jose Carioca having beaten him by a long shot.

**GROUP B STANDINGS**

** Japan (4-0)**

** England (3-1)**

** Brazil (2-4)**

** Scandinavia (1-5)**

And with England and Japan having effectively clinched the next two spots in the knockout stage, all that is left now is to finish their group stage. So first come Nigel Uno and Yugo Moto, both driving Euro NASCAR cars. Nigel lines up on the inner course and Yugi lines up on the outer course.

Yugi gets the jump on Nigel off the line. He further increases his lead when Nigel blows his first hairpin turn, turning an extra 90 degrees and being forced to exert great effort to correct his path.

But then, after going through the crossover, Yugi ends up having a similar issue with his first hairpin turn, turning an extra 45 degrees, then overcorrecting, and then getting back on track; while he still has the lead going into lap 2, Nigel has eaten up a sizeable chunk of said lead.

They go through their 3rd set of turns unscathed, with Yugi maintaining a lead over Nigel through the crossover.

Next thing Yugi knows, he is spinning out through the next chicane, going a full 360 degrees, causing the fans in the stands to gasp. While he does recover, Nigel has already gotten through his final hairpin.

"I SUMMON-" But Yugi is too late, as Nigel Uno crosses the finish line, winning the round before Yugi can summon Summoned Skull.

With that, the final round of Group B gets set to start, with Ferb Fletcher setting himself up in the outer course, and Ash Ketchum in the inner course. Both are driving Audi R8s, which roar thunderously off the line as the green flag flies, the fans cheering them on vigorously.

Ash and Ferb remain in a dead heat through their first turns, with both executing them to perfection. They go over and under each through the crossover, still even.

Then Ash brakes too late going into the chicane, forcing to slow way down. Ferb, meanwhile, has much less trouble with his hairpin turn, and thus assumes the lead going into lap 2.

Ferb, this time, doesn't get through this next hairpin turn as smoothly, sliding slightly on his way through. While this allows Ash to pick up some ground, Ferb still maintains a slight edge going through the crossover, until...

"Pikachu, use Thunderbolt!"

"Pika... CHU!"

The fans in the stands gasp in sudden, figurative shock as a massive bolt of lightning suddenly shoots out from the passenger's side window of Ash's Audi over to Ferb's Audi, sending hundreds of thousands of volts worth of literal shock through its insides, shorting it out completely in an instant. This forces Ferb to coast his smoking car across the line with no power, and allows Ash to finish before he does, taking the win.

"ALRIGHT! WAY TO GO, PIKACHU!"

"Pika pi," blushes Pikachu as Ash pulls the car back into the pit area. He and Pikachu then step out of the Audi R8, where Ash is suddenly met by his girlfriend, May.

"Oh, I'm so proud of you already, Ash!" May proclaims as she throws herself into Ash's arms, kissing him hard on the lips. "Undefeated in the group stage - Yugi must be really jealous of you right now!"

"Yeah, well," Ash blushes, "I couldn't have done it without Pikachu. No seriously, if it weren't for that Thunderbolt, Ferb would've had me beat."

As Pikachu brushes it off, trying to act modest, he suddenly finds himself wrapped up in May's arms, pressed up against her breasts as she cuddles him, saying, "Well you did an awesome job as well, Pikachu." Pikachu is startled at first, but the state of being cuddled quickly gets to him, and he purrs contently into May as Ash looks on, trying unsuccessfully to supress a chuckle...

**GROUP B FINAL STANDINGS**

** Japan (5-1)***

** England (4-2)***

** Brazil (2-4)**

** Scandinavia (1-5)**

** * - Japan and England advance to the quarterfinals.**

** Coming up next; Group C (Egypt, France, India and Mexico).**


	5. Nations Cup (Group C)

** Group B was all Japan and England, as they left the Brazilians and Scandinavians wondering what went wrong as they took their spots in the quarterfinals. We are now moving on to Group C, between Egypt, India, France and Mexico.**

Our first match-up of this group will include Aelita Stones, driving for France. Her opponent; the devious and malevolent Marik Ishtar, driving for Egypt. As Aelita straps herself into an Ariel Atom, her teammate and boyfriend Jeremy Belpois approaches her.

"Please watch yourself out there!" he implores. "This Marik is a very bad guy - I don't wanna see you get hurt by him or anything."

"Relax, Jeremy," assures Aelita. "I'll be fine. Trust me." She kisses Jeremy on the cheek, then starts her engine and drives out onto the track. She lines up on the start/finish line on the outer course - already lined up on the inner course is Marik, driving an identical Ariel Atom and wearing a wicked grin on his face.

The green flag is flown, and they take off with force. Both Aelita and Marik get through their first two turns with ease, and thus are even heading through the crossover.

But then Marik ends up botching his subsequent chicane, sliding through at a bad angle and just barely saving it from turning all the way around. He curses as he sees Aelita zooming ahead into lap 2.

"Oh, dang it!" Aelita brakes just a bit too late going into her next hairpin; she has to slow down considerably to keep off the wall, and this allows Marik to even up the score as they go back through the crossover.

Marik then ends up having the same exact issue on his final hairpin turn, braking too late and having to slow down more than required. He does manage to straighten it up, but ends up crying out "NOOOOOOO!" as he sees Aelita crossing the finish line ahead of him.

Aelita and Marik then take their leave, and their teammates, the French Jeremy Belpois and the Egyptian Ishizu Ishtar, take to the track, with Jeremy on the inner course and Ishizu on the outer course, both behind the wheel of generic RoC Cars.

The green flag drops, and they're off, with Ishizu getting a slight jump on Jeremy. Jeremy then gets loose and nastily skids through his first hairpin turn, allowing Ishizu to widen her lead. "Mmm, my Millennium Necklace predicts a great outcome here," she muses as she hauls ass through the crossover.

But Ishizu then ends up taking her next hairpin turn rather wide; she maintains the lead going into lap 2, but Jeremy has narrowed the gap on her.

For the next set of turns, nothing more interesting happens; both characters get through their turns smoothly and Ishizu retains the lead heading through the crossover. "I forsee a great finish," she marvels to herself...

And sure enough, gasps come from the fans in the stands as Jeremy goes into the final hairpin turn too hard, billowing smoke as he spins around a full 180 degrees. "No... I've let us down," he says with a hanging head as he crosses the finish line in reverse after Ishizu has already finished.

**GROUP C STANDINGS**

** Egypt (1-1)**

** France (1-1)**

** India (0-0)**

** Mexico (0-0)**

Up next is the Indian geek Baljeet Tjinder and the Mexican masked wrestler Rikochet. While Rikochet's face bestows a determined smirk, Baljeet looks much more concerned as they rev their engines at the line, with Baljeet on the outer course and Rikochet on the inner course, both driving Toyota GT86's.

The green flag drops and they take off - Rikochet jumps off the line with authority but goes into his first hairpin turn too hard; as he is forced to correct his line, Baljeet takes the lead.

After they go through the crossover, Baljeet takes his hairpin turn a little wide, whilst Rikochet takes his sweeping turn perfectly, allowing him to pull even with Baljeet going into lap 2.

The two drivers both execute their 3rd turns to perfection, staying even heading into the crossover.

But then the Indian fans all gasp as Baljeet botches the final chicane, almost going around completely. This allows Rikochet to steal the win for Mexico. "Well that was a lucha race!" he says to himself as he leaves the track.

Then comes Manny Rivera for Mexico, driving a Volkswagen Scirocco. His opponent, also driving a Scirocco, is Apu Nahasapeemapetilon. Apu is on the inner course, and Manny is on the outer course.

They both remain dead even off the line as the green flag turns them loose. Both manage to blow their first turns, running rather wide, but they remain even going through the crossover.

The fans in the stands then cheer as Manny has a nasty skid through his next hairpin turn, almost spinning out completely, forced to rotate the car back around and allowing Apu to build a sizeable lead entering lap 2.

Into the next set of turns, things look even better for Apu, as he nails them with ease, continuing to leave Manny in his dust.

Apu's victory is then effectively sealed as Manny spins out completely going into the final chicane, doing a full 180 and being forced to put it in reverse before being able to spin it back around and go forward. Thus, Apu crosses the finish line many seconds before Manny does, taking the win.

**GROUP C STANDINGS**

** Egypt (1-1)**

** France (1-1)**

** India (1-1)**

** Mexico (1-1)**

The fans in the stands cheer ravenously for Apu as he sets himself up for another round, this time on the outer course, in the same Volkswagen Scirocco. Lining up alongside him is Ishizu Ishtar, driving for Egypt, in an identical Scirocco.

The green flag turns them loose; Apu, fresh off his huge victory over Manny Rivera, gets a huge head start this time, sweeping through his wide first turn perfectly as Ishizu has just a bit of trouble on her hairpin turn, allowing Apu to lead through the crossover.

"Oh, for the love of Vishnu!" Apu ends up braking just a bit too late going into his next hairpin, forcing him to slow down some more. Ishizu, meanwhile, gets through her sweeping turn real nicely, closing the gap on Apu as they enter lap 2.

"I have a very good feeling about this," muses Ishizu as she nails her next sweeping turns, remaining nearly even with Apu.

The crowd then cheers insanely as Ishizu, much to her surprise, blows her final hairpin turn, scraping hard against the wall. As she recovers from that, she hangs her head as she sees Apu crossing the line and winning the race, causing his home crowd to go wild.

The fans finally calm back down as they see Apu's teammate, Baljeet Tjinder, driving onto the track in an Ariel Atom, lining up on the inner course. However, he has his work cut out for him as he will be facing Marik Ishtar, lined up on the outer course and driving an identical Ariel Atom.

The green flag drops, and both cars take off like a shot. They both go slightly wide through their first turns, but they keep it together, staying even through the crossover.

They then both nail their second turns, slicing through them like butter, staying even going into lap 2.

The fans then get nervous, but not as nervous as Baljeet, as he ends up going just a bit wide through the next chicane. He frantically works the wheel, trying to keep the car straight; Marik notices and cackles as he takes the lead going through the crossover.

But then the unexpected happens; Marik loses it completely in the final chicane, spinning out by a full 270 degrees, leaving him awkwardly sitting horizontally across the track. The crowd goes hysterical as Baljeet crosses the line as the winner, he himself a bit shocked that he actually won one.

"NOO! For the love of Ra, come on!" Marik bellows as he has an impossible straightening his car; the narrow width forcing him to constantly go from forward and reverse and back again. But eventually, he straightens it, and angrilly crosses the line to finish his run.

**GROUP C STANDINGS**

** India (3-1)**

** Egypt (1-3)**

** France (1-1)**

** Mexico (1-1)**

Up next is Jeremy Belpois for France, and Manny Rivera for Mexico. Manny is on the inner course and Jeremy is on the outer course, and both are behind the wheel of KTM X-Bows.

They take off as the green flag turns them loose. Manny gets the better jump off the line, both get through their first turns real well, and Manny holds a slight edge over Jeremy through the crossover.

But this edge disappears as Manny ends up braking more than he needed to entering the final turn; Jeremy closes the gap coming out of his hairpin turn, and they enter lap 2 dead even.

This fails to change through the third set of turns; both have minor slip-ups going through them, but they get resituated and remain neck-and-neck through the crossover.

"Alright, that DOES it!" Getting too ancy for comfort, Manny, using his grappling-hook ability, suddenly extends his hand over to where Jeremy's car is; the crowd looks on in shock as Manny slashes Jeremy's right-rear tire with his tiger claws, causing Jeremy to lose control through the last chicane and spin out. And so Manny crosses the line triumphant as Jeremy struggles to get his car to the finish in one piece.

When Jeremy finally does get across the line and back into the pits, his partner Aelita comes roaring onto the track, driving a Euro NASCAR car. She lines up on the inner course; alongside her on the outer course is Rikochet, driving an identical Euro NASCAR car.

Aelita gets the jump on Rikochet as they take off; she nails her first hairpin turn perfectly while Rikochet has trouble with his sweeping turn, and Aelita surges ahead into the lead.

Her lead is cut into a bit as she goes through her next chicane a bit wide; fortunately, she keeps her stock car from spinning, and maintains the lead still going into lap 2.

Rikochet and Aelita then slide through their next turns picture-perfectly - not that this helps Rikochet much, as he is still behind Aelita going through the crossover.

"Oh, no, come on!" Aelita groans as she skids through her final hairpin turn. She saves it, but Rikochet nails his last sweeping curve, and it's a drag race to the line...

"WOO-HOO!" Aelita cries out as she is scored as having beaten Rikochet by 19 hundredths of a second. "That was NOT lucha at all," says Rikochet, shaking his head.

**GROUP C STANDINGS**

** India (3-1)**

** France (2-2)**

** Mexico (2-2)**

** Egypt (1-3)**

With France tied with Mexico for Group C's final spot in the knockout stage, Aelita goes back to the line for another round, still in her Euro NASCAR car, this time on the outer course again. She smirks as she sees that her opponent, in an identical Euro NASCAR car, is Baljeet Tjinder, who's lined up on the inner course. Despite the face that India is ahead of France, Aelita still sees Baljeet as easy pickings, and thus a golden opportunity to get France tied for the lead in Group C.

The green flag is flown, and Aelita and Baljeet thunder off the line, with Aelita getting the jump on Baljeet. Aelita does end up going a bit through her sweeping turn, but Baljeet nails his hairpin turn to perfection, and they're even going through the crossover.

On the next set of turns, Aelita skids through her chicane and Baljeet brakes too late into the hairpin. However, they both recover, and are still even going into lap 2.

Baljeet then ends up braking too early into his next hairpin; as he works with the pedals to get his Euro NASCAR car back up to speed, the crowd groans as Aelita blows through her sweeping curves and surges into the lead.

The groaning in the crowd turns into a loud, shocked gasp as Baljeet brakes too late again going into the final hairpin, which leads to his car skidding violently into the turn. As he struggles with the wheel, trying to keep it off the wall, Aelita Stones swings through her final sweeping curve again and claims the victory.

After Aelita and Baljeet take their leaves, onto the track come Jeremy Belpois for France and Apu Nahasapeemapetilon for India, both behind the wheel of generic RoC Cars.

The green flag waves, and they go surging off the line; Jeremy from the inner course and Apu from the outer course. Apu gets his car really loose going into his first sweeping turns, and he frantically works the wheel to keep it straight, whereas Jeremy has no trouble with his hairpin turn, and he takes the lead going through the crossover.

Both Apu and Jeremy then nail their second set of turns perfectly, and so Jeremy retains the lead entering lap 2.

But the crowd then all start facepalming as they see Apu's RoC car slips through the next hairpin turn, coming dangerously close to spinning out. This allows Jeremy to widen his lead as he nails his next sweeping curves.

And with that, Apu and Jeremy both get through their final turns with ease; aside from the French fans' cheering, the crowd, being majority Indian, is comparitively silent as Jeremy crosses the line well ahead of Apu, who is left to wonder, "What did I do to deserve this bad karma?"

**GROUP C STANDINGS**

** France (4-2)**

** India (3-3)**

** Mexico (2-2)**

** Egypt (1-3)**

It now comes down to Mexico and Egypt; Egypt has a chance to tie India for the second spot in the knockout stage while Mexico still has a chance to claim that spot all for themselves. Next up is Marik Ishtar on the inner course, and Manny Rivera on the outer course, both behind the wheel of KTM X-Bows.

"Hey, El Tigre!" Marik calls out. Manny looks over at Marik from his car; he suddenly becomes entranced by the sight of the glowing on the end of the strange-looking rod that Marik is showing him; Manny is, in fact, being hypnotized by Marik's Millennium Rod, being forced into doing his bidding...

"I forfeit!" Manny suddenly cries out. Under Marik Ishtar's influence, he suddenly puts his KTM into reverse and backs it off the track and out of the pit area. Marik, having been declared the winner by default (though he clearly forced Manny to do it), smugly drives his own car back into the pits, cackling as the fans in the stands boo relentlessly, voicing their disapproval over this surprise outcome...

When the fans finally come down, the last race gets set to get underway; for Egypt, Ishizu Ishtar is lined up on the outer course, and for Mexico, Rikochet is lined up on the inner course. Both are piloting the most powerful car in the Race of Champions roster - the Audi R8.

The green flag drops, and both cars' engines roar as they go rocketing off the line. They remain even through the first set of turns and the crossover.

But then Rikochet gets real loose through the ensuing chicane, and has to work the wheel hard to keep it straight. Ishizu, meanwhile, gets through her hairpin like a knife on butter, and takes the lead going into lap 2.

Both characters then end up botching their next set of turns somewhat, gettling loose through them. But they save their cars, and Ishizu retains the lead.

Ishizu, however, ends up skidding nastily through her final sweeping curve. Rikochet, meanwhile, nails his final hairpin turn, turning it into a drag race, which Ishizu wins by less than a tenth of a second. "Yes! My necklace told me I would win this race," she marvels as Rikochet pounds the wheel of his car in frustration, with Mexico having been eliminated from the Nations Cup.

**GROUP C STANDINGS**

** France (4-2)**

** India (3-3)**

** Egypt (3-3)**

** Mexico (2-4)**

Egypt, however, still has a shot. Even though all the scheduled Group C races have been run, they are tied for 2nd place with India, and 2nd is the final transfer spot into the knockout. Thus, Egypt and India will go at it one more time in a single, sudden-death tiebreaker race.

Raring to go, Ishizu Ishtar lines her Audi R8 back on the start/finish line, this time on the inner course. On the outer course, representing India and driving an identical Audi R8 is Apu Nahasapeemapetilon, who's greeted with a great roar from his home crowd.

The crowd starts to chant "Apu! Apu! Apu! Apu!" as the green flag turns him and Ishizu loose. Both cars remain dead even as they slip through their first two turns with ease. They go through the crossover into their second sets of turns, where Apu scoots through his hairpin turn with ease and Ishizu slides right through her sweeping curve, and they remain even going into lap 2.

But the crowd's cheers give way to groans as Apu suddenly gets loose going into his 2nd hairpin turn, just managing to keep his Audi straight while Ishizu has no trouble with her 2nd sweeping turns, thus taking the lead going through the crossover.

But then, the Indian fans find new hope as Ishizu brakes way too late heading into the final hairpin. As she slows way up to try and keep her car off the wall, Apu nails his final two curves, and it's a drag race to the line...

The stands erupt into an insane asylum as Apu nips Ishizu at the line by mere inches. Apu himself goes nuts in his car as he drives it back around and the fans chant, "Apu! Apu! Apu! Apu!"

"Oh, Marik is going to kill me!" Ishizu groans as she wheels her car back toward the pits; her spirits are only further dampened as a triumphant Apu drives right by her, saying "Thank you, come again!" in a nasty blustering sort of way as he flips Ishizu the bird...

**GROUP C FINAL STANDINGS**

** France (4-2)***

** India (3-3)****

** Egypt (3-3)****

** Mexico (2-4)**

** * - France and India advance to the quarterfinals.**

** ** - India defeated Egypt in a tiebreaker, so they advance to the quarterfinals while Egypt is eliminated from the Nations Cup.**

** Coming up next; Group D (Canada, the Celtic Nations, China and Italy).**


	6. Nations Cup (Group D)

** Group C was one of the weirder parts of the group stage; a driver forfeited (whilst under hypnosis, of course), and India and Egypt ended up in a tiebreaker, which India won. Thus, India and France have advanced to the quarterfinals, leaving just Group D left, in which Canada, the Celtic Nations, China and Italy to face off for the final two spots in the quarterfinals.**

"Hey, Bloom!" Bloom, driving for Italy, is greeted by her boyfriend Sky. "Best of luck to you and Will both. But mainly you."

"Thanks, Sky!" Bloom blushes as Sky pecks her on the lips.

Bloom then straps herself into a Volkswagen Scirocco, fires up the engine and comes sailing up onto the track. She lines herself up on the outer course at the start/finish line, where she smirks at her opponent on the inner course - Nikki Wong, driving for Canada in an identical Volkswagen.

Nikki and Bloom go blasting off the line under the guise of the green flag. Bloom has a minor slip-up through her first sweeping curve while Nikki nails her hairpin turn; hence Nikki has a slight lead through the crossover.

The two cars go through their second turns nearly perfectly; but Bloom, with her higher corner exit speed heading out of her hairpin turn, and takes the lead entering lap 2.

"Ugh, stupid car!" Nikki snaps as she gets horribly loose through her next sweeping curves, allowing Bloom to build up a more solid lead.

And so then they both enter their final turns, with both sliding through them with ease. Bloom, of course, is a good ways ahead of Nikki, and so she wins with authority, with Nikki pounding the steering wheel of her car in frustration.

Nikki and Bloom drive off of the track, and on come Will Vandom for Italy, and Artha Penn for Canada. Will is on the inner course while Artha is on the outer course, and with both driving Toyota GT86's.

The green flag is displayed, and they both launch off the line. Will, however, ends up slipping a great deal through her first hairpin, allowing Artha to get the upper hand through the crossover.

Both Will and Artha then get their respective 2nd turns down pat, with Artha leading lap 2.

But as they start the 2nd lap, Will rolls down the window of her Toyota as she wheels the car through her next sweeping curve. Coming out of the turn, she charges up her electrokinetic powers and fires...

"OH!" gasps the crowd.

"What... what's happening?!" gulps Artha; Will Vandom has just shorted out his car with a lightning blast from her hand. Artha therefore is forced to coast all the way through the last sweeping turn with no power, and this allows Will to zoom by through her final hairpin turn, crossing the finish line and claiming the victory.

**GROUP D STANDINGS**

** Italy (2-0)**

** Canada (0-2)**

** Celtic Nations (0-0)**

** China (0-0)**

With Italy having swept Canada, the two cars are removed from the track (with Artha's having to be towed off), and out come Amy Wong for China and Fanny Fulbright for the Celtic Nations (herself being Irish). Amy lines up on the outer course, Fanny lines up on the inner course, and both are driving KTM X-Bows.

They launch off the line under the guise of the green flag. Both cars slip up a bit on their first turns, but they hold it and remain even through the crossover.

But then Amy gets really loose through her next hairpin turn, spewing smoke as she turns nearly 90 degrees further than needed. She jerks the wheel hard to the right, straightening up her KTM while Fanny pulls ahead, assuming the lead going into lap 2.

"Pull it together, stupid car!" Fanny snarls as her X-Bow gets loose going through her next sweeping curve. She just manages to save it, while Amy nails her hairpin turn, pulling even with Fanny through the crossover.

The crowd then reels as Fanny spins out through the final hairpin, going around a full 180 degrees. "BLAST!" she yells as she drives the rest of the way in reverse, with Amy Wong easily beating her to the line.

They leave the track, and on come Chang Wufei, driving for China, and Groundskeeper Willie, driving for the Celtic Nations (himself being Scottish). Both are driving Euro NASCAR cars - Chang is on the inner course and Willie is on the outer course.

"Time to show everyone here why ye should never buy anything made in China!" Willie smirks as the green flag turns them loose, with Willie getting the jump on the start.

Chang, however, stays right with Willie through the crossover and through the second set of turns, and it remains close going into lap 2, with Willie maintaining but a slight edge.

The two remain even through their third set of turns and through the crossover, and all the way through their final turns, leaving it up to a drag race.

"FER SCOTLAND!" Willie bellows upon having been scored as the winner.

**GROUP D STANDINGS**

** Italy (2-0)**

** Celtic Nations (1-1)**

** China (1-1)**

** Canada (0-2)**

Chang leaves the track in shame as Willie pulls back around and lines his Euro NASCAR car up again, this time on the inner course, absolutely itching for another round. Lining up alongside him on the inner course is Nikki Wong, driving an identical Euro NASCAR car.

Willie goes thundering off the line as the green flag flies. However, he goes too hard into the first hairpin; he slows way up to keep it off the wall, allowing Nikki Wong to move ahead into the lead.

They go through the crossover and into the second set of turns; Nikki gets loose through the ensuing chicane. She saves it, but Groundskeeper Willie pulls back up even with her as they enter lap 2.

The two remain even through their third sets of turns, with both nailing their turns and going sailing through the crossover.

"Ugh, DAMMIT!" Nikki Wong brakes way too late heading into the final hairpin, coming to a complete stop less than an inch from the wall.

"Not gettin' any wang, Wong?!" Willie gloats as he sails by to claim the victory.

After Nikki finally finishes her run, she and Willie both go back into the pits, and their teammates Artha Penn and Fanny Fulbright drive onto the track in generic RoC Cars; Artha is on the inner course and Fanny is on the outer course.

The green flag sets them loose; Fanny and Artha take off like shots, remaining even as they swing through their first turns.

They then sail through the crossover; Fanny nails her hairpin while Artha gets his sweeping curve down pat, and they remain even entering lap 2.

"OH!" gasps the crowd; Artha Penn's car suddenly sputters and dies, spewing smoke. "NOOO!" he cries out as his car limps to a stop in the middle of the track. "Stupid boy!" Fanny blusters as she drives the rest of the way to the finish line. "Girls ARE the better drivers, heh heh!"

**GROUP D STANDINGS**

** Celtic Nations (3-1)**

** Italy (2-0)**

** China (1-1)**

** Canada (0-4)**

Next up is Will Vandom for Italy, and Amy Wong for China, both driving Ariel Atoms. Will is set up on the outer course and Amy is on the inner course.

They both set off under the guise of the green flag. Amy, however, botches her first hairpin turn, sliding through at an awkward angle and giving the lead to Will as they power their ways through the crossover.

Amy does manage to get the ensuing sweeping curve down pat, but Will nails her hairpin turn as well, and she maintains the lead entering lap 2.

Nothing interesting happens through the third set of turns; Amy and Will both get through them cleanly, and Will Vandom is still in the lead.

"No, no, NO!" Amy Wong spins out a full 270 degrees, almost getting wedged between the walls, and is forced to constantly shift between forward and reverse and back again just to get the car straight again. Will Vandom, meanwhile, gets through her last curves cleanly and steals the win for Italy.

They leave the track, and Bloom comes on, driving a Toyota GT86. She lines up on the inner course. Alongside her on the outer course is Chang Wufei, in an identical Toyota GT86.

At the waving of the green flag, they floor it. The both of them slide through their first turns like butter, remaining dead even through the crossover.

But then Bloom gets really loose heading through the sweeping turns while Chang nails his hairpin turn, and Chang Wufei takes the lead going into lap 2.

But then Chang brakes a little late going into his next hairpin, having to remain on the brakes longer than otherwise needed. Bloom gets through her turn just fine, and she and Chang are even once again.

They remain even through their last turns, with Chang getting through his sweeping curves perfectly and Bloom easily scooting through her hairpin turn; they race to the line, with Bloom nipping Chang by 15 hundredths of a second.

"I've... let us down," Chang laments as Bloom cheers, "Yay, I hope Sky was watching!"

**GROUP D STANDINGS**

** Italy (4-0)**

** Celtic Nations (3-1)**

** China (1-3)**

** Canada (0-4)**

At this point, even with four races left, Canada and China are effectively shut out. Nonetheless, they will finish this, as Chang Wufei pulls back around to the starting line, this time on the inner course, in the same Toyota GT86. Artha Penn lines up alongside him on the outer course, also driving a Toyota GT86.

The green flag drops, and they take off, still determined to score a victory as they swing through their first turns, still running even and not giving an inch through the crossover.

But then Chang ends up slipping through the ensuing chicane, struggling to get the car straightened back up. He succeeds, but this has allowed Artha to pull ahead significantly going into lap 2.

Chang then gets through his next sweeping curves as if he were on a cakewalk, more determined than ever to run Artha down, even though he's still ahead going into the crossover.

Artha then swings through his final sweeping curves, wheeling his Toyota through with ease. With nothing separating him from the finish line, he pedals forward and takes the checkered flag, bagging the first win for Canada as Chang crosses the line two seconds later - a big deal in motor racing, for sure.

As they leave the track, the Canadian Nikki Wong and the Chinese Amy Wong (no relation) enter the track, with Nikki on the outer course and Amy on the inner course, both piloting Ariel Atoms.

The green flag is then waved and Nikki and Amy dart off the line in their feisty go-kart-like machines. But Nikki ends up sliding ratherly awkwardly through the chicane at the end of her first sweeping turn, allowing Amy to take the lead going into the crossover.

Then Amy and Nikki both botch their next respective turns, with them both skidding through at awkward angles. They both correct their paths, and going into lap 2, Amy still has the lead.

The third set of turns they both navigate much better, executing them to perfection. However, Amy still leads.

But then Amy gets arrogant and brakes way too late going into her final hairpin turn, struggling to slow down until it just lightly taps the wall with its nose. Shaking her head, Amy puts it in reverse, and then back to forward and she goes the rest of the way through as Nikki Wong as already stolen the win, flipping the bird back at Amy and saying "Suck it, bimbo!"

**GROUP D STANDINGS**

** Italy (4-0)**

** Celtic Nations (3-1)**

** Canada (2-4)**

** China (1-5)**

All that's left now is to see which of the top two teams in the group is #1! Bloom drives onto the track for Italy, in a generic RoC Car. She lines up on the inner course, and on the outer course, representing the Celtic Nations, is the Irish lass Fanny Fulbright, also in an RoC Car.

At the green flag, they put their gas pedals to the floor. While Bloom is slow going through her hairpin, Fanny races through her sweeping curve and jumps out ahead into the lead.

Bloom, meanwhile, manages to navigate her next sweeping curve really well, Fanny does equally well with her corner, and maintains the lead into lap 2.

Through the third set of turns, both girls go through cleanly, and Fanny is still in the lead. But then Bloom, using her pyrokinetic powers, conjures up a fireball in her hand.

"Oh my GOD!" exclaims Fanny as she realizes that Bloom has just set her engine on fire. Frantically, Fanny stops the car before the final turn, unstraps herself and runs away from the car for dear life as Bloom crosses the line as the winner.

When Fanny's wrecked car is removed and Bloom has returned to the pits, the last two competitors, Will Vandom and Groundskeeper Willie, take to the track driving Audi R8's. Will linds up on the inner course and Willie on the outer course.

The steward waves the green flag, and the two Audis go thundering off the line. Through the first turns, they both remain even, drifting through the turns like a skater on ice.

But then Will has a nasty spin in the subsequent chicane, almost getting stuck in between the walls. Willie, meanwhile, surges ahead, leading the first lap.

...

By the time Will gets up to speed, Willie has gone back around, right up on her rear bumper. "Can't take it up the butt, can ye?" Willie smirks as he crosses the line as the winner.

As Will finishes her lap, Willie pulls off over into the pits, triumph flowing through him. He exits his car with an air of swagger, where he spots Fanny, still catching her breath after escaping the flaming car, with her boyfriend Patton by her side, trying to offer comfort.

"Ye okay, lass?" Willie asks.

"Yeah, I'm alright?" replies Fanny. "After all, we will be returning to the quarterfinals."

"Yep. And we'll be reclaimin' this scrap-pile they call India!" Willie laughs. "But seriously," he smiles as he offers his fist, "Put her there, pal! CELTIC NATIONS!"

"Celtic Nations!" cheer Fanny as she pounds it with Willie.

**GROUP D FINAL STANDINGS**

** Italy (5-1)***

** Celtic Nations (4-2)***

** Canada (2-4)**

** China (1-5)**

** * - Italy and the Celtic Nations advance to the quarterfinals.**

** Quarterfinals coming up next!**


	7. Nations Cup (Quarterfinals)

** So we've just finished up the last group stage, which saw Italy and the Celtic Nations dominant over Canada and China to claim the last two spots in the quarterfinals.**

** We're now ready for the quarterfinal round; each individual round from here on out will be best two out of three. With that, here will be the quarterfinal match-ups;**

**United States vs Australia**

**Italy vs Celtic Nations**

**Japan vs England**

**France vs India**

** Let's get going, then!**

Homer Simpson has just started the engine on an Audi R8, revving it like a madman. He briefly looks in his rearview mirror to see his wife Marge blowing him a kiss for good luck as he wheels the car out onto the track, lining up in position on the inner course. Lined up alongside him on the outer course is Guy "SheZow" Hamdon, representing Australia, and driving an identical Audi R8.

The green flag is waved, and both cars go rocketing off the line, seemingly dead even. Through the first set of turns, Guy Hamdon gets just a little loose - just enough for Homer Simpson to eek out a slight lead going into the crossover.

Both drivers get through their second sets of turns picture-perfectly, and so Homer maintains a clear advantage heading into lap 2.

But then Homer has a slip-up through the third set of turns, sliding through awkwardly and sending some smoke billowing up from the pavement. Guy Hamdon pulls even with Homer Simpson going out of these turns.

Through their final sets of turns, both drivers mess up, having ugly skids. But they save their cars and remain even on their respective corner exits, leading to a drag race to the checkered flag...

"WOO-HOO!" proclaims Homer as he beats Guy to the line by mere inches.

As the two drivers retreat to the pit area with Homer the triumphant one, their teammates both take to the track, driving identical Ariel Atoms. Lined up on the outer course is Edd, looking to get the United States in the semifinals; lined up on the inner course is Wally Beatles, looking to keep Australia from being eliminated from the Nations' Cup.

Both Arial Atoms blast off the line as the green flag turns them loose. Edd and Wally both zip through their first sets of turns as if threading a needle effortlessly, and thus remain dead even going out of the turns.

"Aw, CRUD!" Wally groans as he gets loose and slides through his next chicane turn, losing precious speed and allowing Edd to grab hold of the lead going into lap 2.

Wally makes up for that mistake by getting through his next sweeping turns perfectly - or rather he would've, except that Edd has nailed his hairpin turn just as well, and he retains a solid lead heading into the crossover.

"Oh fiddlesticks, come on!" Edd yelps as his car slips slightly through his last sweeping curve. This allows Wally Beatles to gain some ground on Edd, but it is not enough, as Edd holds Wally off across the line to win the race, eliminating Australia from the Nations Cup and getting the United States into the semifinals.

...

Edd retires back into the pits and gets out of his car, met by a series of high-fives and hugs from the Simpsons and his fellow Eds, along with kisses from his girlfriend Nazz while two Euro NASCAR cars head out onto the track for the start of the next set of races, which will be between Italy and the Celtic Nations. On the inner course is Fanny Fulbright for the Celtic Nations, and on the outer course is Will Vandom for Italy.

The green flag turns them loose; Fanny spins her tires, and ends up falling behind Will Vandom from the get-go. Will manages to stay ahead going through the first set of turns.

Smoke is then seen billowing out from the outer chicane as Will skids through in an ugly sort of manner. Fanny, meanwhile, has no troubles with her hairpin turn, and pulls even with Will heading into lap 2.

Both cars get very loose through their third sets of turns, but they manage to save it, and so they both remain even going into the crossover; that is, until Will Vandom charges up a jet of lightning in her hand...

"AAH, DAMMIT!" The crowd gasps as Fanny Fulbright's car is pummeled with a jet of lightning from Will Vandom, disabling her vehicle as its circuits are shorted out by the ultra-high voltage flowing through them. With this, Will pulls ahead, swings through her last sweeping curves and claims the victory for Italy while Fanny's smoking, broken car limps across the line several seconds later.

When Will and Fanny have both left for the pits, out come Will's teammate Bloom and Fanny's teammate Groundskeeper Willie. Bloom sets up on the inner course and Willie sets up on the outer course; both are driving identical KTM X-Bows.

They both zoom off the line under the guise of the green flag, with Groundskeeper Wille maintaining a slight edge as they swing through their first sets of turns with ease.

Willie and Bloom both sail over the crossover and into their next turns, with Willie getting just a little bit loose, sliding through his hairpin turn slightly - just enough for Bloom to eek out a slight lead going into lap 2, and leading Willie to say to his car, "Dammit, I''m gonna kick yer arse into next year if we don't win this!"

But next thing he knows, Bloom ends up having a similar slip-up through her next chicane, sliding just as awkwardly as Wille did in his last turn and allowing Willie to step back up into the lead. But what he doesn't notice as he does so is the fireball that is building up in Bloom's hand...

"AAH, BLAST!" Before Willie can think twice, his engine has suddenly exploded into a quagmire of fire and flaming debris. Nonetheless, he trudges on, limping his broken car through the final sweeping curve and across the line; Bloom, of course, has already made it, thus the Celtic Nations are eliminated from the Nations Cup and Italy advances to the semifinals.

...

It takes several minutes for Willie's destroyed car and the debris that came from it to be removed from the racing surface; when it does, two Toyota GT86's come up onto the track and line up at the start/finish line. On the inner course is Ferb Fletcher, driving for England, and on the outer course is Yugi Moto, driving for Japan.

Ferb gets the jump on Yugi at the waving of the green flag, but he does end up sliding awkwardly through the first hairpin turn, having to really work at the wheel to keep from spinning out. This allows Yugi to take the lead heading through the crossover.

Both Yugi and Ferb get through their next turns almost as if they weren't there, and so Yugi maintains the lead going into lap 2.

But then Yugi comes dangerously close to spinning out in the next hairpin turn, sending up plumes of smoke from that area that incite a tense gasp from the crowd. By the time he gets it going again, Ferb has gone ahead into the lead, forcing Yugi to take drastic measures...

"I SUMMON DARK MAGICIAN IN ATTACK MODE! DARK MAGIC ATTACK!"

The fans in Saltlake Stadium are shocked beyond compare to see a man dressed in purple robes and wielding a large staff suddenly appear out of nowhere on the roof of Yugi's car. Without delay, a blast of purple light is cast from the man's staff, which scores a direct hit on Ferb Fletcher's car, incapactating it as he slows for the final hairpin and thus preventing him from getting back up to speed.

"Yes, we did it!" cheers Yugi Moto as his Toyota GT86 crosses the line and makes him the winner of this round.

After Ferb's out-of-commission vehicle is cleared from the racing surface, on come two generic RoC Cars. The one on the inner course is driven by Ash Ketchum for Japan, and the one on the outer course is driven by Nigel Uno for England.

The two cars get off to a dead-even start at the green flag. Both slide awkwardly through their first sets of turns, but they maintain control and stay even through the crossover.

"PIKA!" howls a distressed Pikachu as Ash's car nearly runs into the wall going into the next hairpin - Ash is forced to slow the car way down to keep it off the wall, allowing Nigel to build a sizeable lead going into lap 2.

The third set of turns yield no changes - both drivers get through adequately, and Nigel Uno still has a solid lead...

"Pikachu, use Thunderbolt now!"

"Pika... CHU!"

"AAAAAAAAAAAAGGGHH!" Nigel screams as Pikachu's Thunderbolt scores a direct hit on him through the open cockpit into the car; Nigel loses his muscle control as it gives way to the many thousands of volts from the Thunderbolt, which leads to his car crashing head-first into the chicane, knocking him out of the race. As a result, Ash Ketchum wins, England is out of the Nations Cup and Japan is in the semifinals.

...

When the results of the Thundebolt are cleared off, two of the competitors from the last two teams left drive onto the track in identical Volkswagen Sciroccos. The fans in Saltlake Stadium give a huge standing O for Baljeet Tjinder, one of the characters driving for the host nation - India. Baljeet is lined up on the outer course, and on the inner course is his opponent; driving for France, it is Jeremy Belpois.

Baljeet and Jeremy remain even going off the line past the green flag; they stay even through their first respective turns and the subsequent crossover.

But then Jeremy slides awkwardly through his next chicane, almost getting wedged in between the walls, allowing Baljeet to build a sizeable lead going into lap 2, which incites much cheering from the home crowd.

Through the third set of turns, Baljeet does get a bit loose in his hairpin turn while Jeremy nails his sweeping curve - however, Baljeet retains the lead exiting the turn.

Both drivers then get through their last sets of turns alright, which leads to real ecstatic cheers from the crowd as Baljeet Tjinder wins the round for India, leaving Jeremy Belpois wondering what went wrong.

When they've left the track, two Audi R8s come roaring onto the racing surface, lining up at the starting line, hungry to get going. On the inner course is Aelita Stones, representing France, and on the outer course is Apu Nahasapeemapetilon, representing India.

As the green flag drops, both cars go thundering off of the line. Apu and Aelita both go sweeping through their respective first turns like a knife on butter, and remain dead even into the crossover.

Apu then gets loose, sliding awkwardly through his hairpin. The crowd gasps at first, but they breathe a sigh of relief when they see Aelita having similar issues on her turns, and the two remain relatively even going into lap 2.

Then on the third set of turns, Aelita gets just a bit loose through her chicane - losing just enough speed for Apu to take the lead by half a car length heading into the crossover.

But then Apu goes into a skid through his chicane; at the same time, Aelita nails his hairpin turn, pulling up almost even with Apu and leaving everyone in the stands with bated breath as they go to the checkered flag...

By one-thousandth of a second, Aelita nips Apu at the line, winning it for France. With this, France and India are now tied at one win each, and will now face each other in a tiebreaker race to determine who moves on to the semifinals.

Aelita drives her car back around and lines it back up at the line on the inner course while Apu retreats to the pits. Another Audi R8 then comes roaring onto the track driven by Baljeet Tjinder for India; he lines up on the outer course, waiting with growing anticipation...

The two Audis go surging off the line as the green flag is waved...

"NO!"

A shocked gasp ripples through the crowd; Baljeet Tjinder's Audi R8 has blown its engine. The car doesn't move when Baljeet floors the pedal - it only sputters and dies, with smoke billowing up and fluids leaking out. Defeated, Baljeet exits the broken car, waves to his home fans to acknowledge that he's okay, and leaves for the pits, hanging his head.

With that, Aelita Stones is called as the winner; thus France defeats India and moves onto the semifinals. Aelita wheels her car into the pits, parks it and gets out to be greeted by her teammate and boyfriend, Jeremy.

"Well, that's not how I wanted to win it," Aelita shrugs, "but it's better than a loss, I guess."

"Are you kidding?" Jeremy beams as he slings an arm around Aelita. "We're headed to the freakin' semifinals - we have a real shot to take the Nations' Cup! Why would you not be excited?!"

"I... I don't know," Aelita blushes.

"Oh, that's alright," Jeremy shrugs as she kisses Aelita on the lips. "Now c'mon! The semifinals are coming up soon, and we'll both need to get ready..."

...

**The final rounds will be coming up next, with the United States, Italy, Japan and France going at it for the Nations Cup! Stay tuned!**


	8. Nations Cup (Final Four)

** Well, we're now down to the final stages of the Nations Cup!**

** The United States, Italy and Japan slaughtered Australia, the Celtic Nations and England in the quarterfinals, and France also managed to squeeze by the host team - India - in that same round. Thus, these will be the semifinal match-ups;**

** United States vs Italy**

** Japan vs France**

** It's on to the very end of the Cup from here...!**

** "**Well, this is it, Double D!" Homer Simpson proclaims to his teammate, Edd. "We're one of the final four! And we're gonna win this thing for sure! Right? Right?!"

"Uh, yes, I suppose so," Edd chuckles, trying to sound modest. "Ah, look, our ladies are on approach."

Homer looks up to see his wife Marge, along with Edd's girlfriend Nazz, arriving to wish them luck.

"I believe you're first, Double D?" Nazz winks. Edd nods.

"Well, good luck, sweetie," Nazz says smoothly as she kisses Edd on the cheek.

"You too, Homey," Marge winks as she kisses her husband. With that, Homer and Edd take to their cars...

Edd is the first up for the United States, driving onto the track in a Euro NASCAR car, and lining himself up on the inner course. Alongside him on the outer course is his opponent, Bloom, driving for Italy in an identical Euro NASCAR car.

In no time, the green flag is flown, and Edd and Bloom go rocketing off the line, starting off the semifinals of the Nations Cup. Bloom gets loose in the first set of turns and slides awkwardly through, whereas Edd gets through his turns perfectly, sailing through the lead heading into the crossover.

"Oh, come on, stay straight!" Edd pleads with his car as it gets loose through the next sweeping curve. As he just manages to get through without crashing, Bloom nails her hairpin turn and pulls even with Edd going into lap 2.

Through the next set of turns, both Edd and Bloom get tight, having to slow down more than what they thought was needed just to stay off the wall. But they both save their cars and remain even.

"Oh, no, no, NO!" Bloom cries as her car suddenly spins out in the final chicane. She pounds furiously on the steering wheel in utter frustration as Edd triumphantly crosses the line as the winner.

After Edd and Bloom have left the racetrack, Homer Simpson and Will Vandom arrive on the track, both behind the wheel of RoC Cars. Homer is on the outer course, while Will is on the inner course.

The two drivers are quickly released by the green flag, with Homer getting the head start, but then losing ground in the chicane, allowing Will to pull even with him.

Things don't get any better for Homer in the second set of turns. "D'OH!" he grunts as he almost spins out through the hairpin, allowing Will to take the lead by a car length going into lap 2.

The margin of separation stays the same through the third set of turns, as both cars adequately slide through, and Will Vandom maintaining the lead on corner exit.

But then the crowd gasps as Will almost loses it through her last hairpin turn, allowing Homer to pull even with Will heading onto the homestretch...

"WOO-HOO!" By eight-hundredths of a second, Homer Simpson nips Will Vandom at the line, sending Italy to the third-place race while the United States moves on to the finals.

...

Shortly thereafter, two KTM X-Bows pull out onto the track, lining up at the starting line, ready to run a round. The car on the inner course is driven by Ash Ketchum for Japan, while the car on the outer course is driven by Aelita Stones for France.

Both cars rev their engines furiously, and then, just like that, the green flag turns them loose. Ash and Aelita both slice through their first turns like a knife through butter, remaining dead even heading into the crossover.

But then a gasp slices through the crowd as Ash almost runs right into the wall heading into the chicane. He saves it, but this error allows Aelita to take the lead going into lap 2.

Through the next set of turns, Ash Ketchum does manage to gain a bit of ground on Aelita Stones; however, Aelita still has the lead going out of the turns...

"Pikachu, use Thunderbolt!"

"Pika... CHU!"

The crowd gasps, and Aelita screams a ghastly scream as she is hit directly by the Thunderbolt from Ash's Pikachu as he shoots it right into her car through its open cockpit. The electricity races through her, causing her to lose all her muscle control as her car runs down the straightaway and crashes into the wall in the final chicane.

"Yeah, we did it, Pikachu!" Ash cries out joyfully as he crosses the line as the winner of the race.

However, as Aelita staggers off the track while the wreckage is cleared, it's far from a done deal for either side. Once the track is cleaned, Yugi Moto drives onto the track for Japan, lining up on the outer course, while Jeremy Belpois, for France, lines up on the inner course. Both are driving Volkswagen Sciroccos.

In no time, the green flag waves, and the two Volkswagens take off, with Jeremy getting the jump on Yugi, and staying in the lead all the way through the first set of turns.

Going out of the crossover and into the second set of turns, both Yugi and Jeremy get quite loose, sending up plumes of smoke from both portions of the track as they slide through, coming real close to spinning out. But they both keep it together and go into lap 2, with Jeremy holding on to the lead.

Yugi absolutely nails his next hairpin turn; unfortunately for him, Jeremy also nails his sweeping curves. As Yugi is still behind going into the crossover, this prompts him to do this;

"I SUMMON SUMMONED SKULL IN ATTACK MODE! NOW, ATTACK!"

Everyone in the stands reels as a tall, grotesque, bony figure appears from out of nowhere on the roof of Yugi's car. The figure raises its hands up, and a bolt of lightning suddenly shoots down from the sky, scoring a direct hit on Jeremy's car. "NOOOOOOO!" Jeremy wails as his car is shorted out by the electrical blast, knocking him out of the race.

With that, Yugi Moto crosses the finish line as the winner, and Japan officially defeats France in the semifinals, thus the final match-ups will be as follows;

Third-place race; France vs Italy

Finals; United States vs Japan

...

Jeremy and his disabled Volkswagen Scirocco are towed back into the pits; then his teammate and girlfriend, Aelita Stones, comes roaring back onto the track for the third-place race, lining up on the inner course behind the wheel of an Ariel Atom. Alongside her on the outer course is Will Vandom, driving for Italy in an identical Ariel Atom.

Both take off like a shot under the guise of the green flag. They swerve effortlessly through their first respective turns remaining borderline even heading into the crossover.

"Oh, come on, don't crash!" Aelita pleads as she brakes too late heading into the chicane. She just keeps it off the wall, but relinquishes the lead to Will Vandom going into lap 2.

Will then has a similar problem going into her next hairpin turn, braking just a bit too late in corner entry. But not only does she save it, she even keeps the lead going out of the turn, albeit totally unaware of the energy blast forming in Aelita's hand...

"OH!" gasps the crowd as Aelita launches the energy blast and scores a hit on Will Vandom's right-rear tire, blowing it up. "DAMMIT!" Will yells as her car loses control in the final chicane, spinning out and crashing hard into the wall.

"Yeah, I did it!" Aelita proclaims as she crosses the line as the winner of this round.

Once the track and the wreckage are cleared, Aelita's teammate and boyfriend Jeremy Belpois arrives on the track, lining up on the outer course behind the wheel of a Toyota GT86, determined to secure third-place for France. On the inner course, driving an identical Toyota GT86 and hoping to not let that happen is Bloom, driving for Italy.

The green flag is dropped, and Jeremy and Bloom both floor their gas pedals...

"NO!" Bloom cries out as her car sputters and dies, billowing smoke from its back end, owing to the fact that her car has just blown its engine.

With this, Jeremy Belpois is called as the winner, and France claims the third-place finish in the Nations Cup. While a wrecker is summoned to take Bloom's broken car off the track, Jeremy drives his own car back into the pits, disappointed to have won this way (as Aelita did for them over India back in the quarterfinals), but still satisfied with at least getting a podium finish in the Cup.

...

And now, it's time for the final round, where Japan and the United States will wage war for the top spot in the Nations Cup! Up first for the United States is Homer Simpson; he lines up on the inner course in an Ariel Atom, cockier than he has ever been in this competition, as he this close to winning. Alongside him is his opponent for Japan who is equally cocky - driving an identical Ariel Atom, it is Ash Ketchum.

The two rocket off the line under the guise of the green flag. Both cars get tight through their first turns, having to go slower than normal through them, but they both save it and keep on going, with Homer maintaining a slight edge.

But then in the second set of turns, while Homer gets through his sweeping curves adequately, Ash perfectly nails his hairpin turn, taking the lead going into lap 2.

Ash then goes through his next hairpin turn just as perfectly; Homer also gets through his next sweeping curves pretty well, but he is still a ways behind entering the crossover.

But then the crowd lets out a shocked gasp as Ash gets his car really loose and slides a real ugly slide through the final chicane. As he just gets through without crashing and drives through the last sweeping curve, Homer eases through his final hairpin turn, pulling even with Ash on the homestretch...

"WOO-HOO!" By nine-thousandths of a second, Homer Simpson beats Ash Ketchum to the line, getting the United States one more step closer to winning the Nations Cup.

When Homer and Ash have cleared the racetrack, their teammates Edd and Yugi Moto drive onto the track, both driving Audi R8's, with Edd lined up on the outer course and Yugi lined up on the inner course.

The two Audis go thundering off the line as the green flag flies. "Oh, fiddlesticks, come on!" Edd moans as he struggles with his first sweeping curves, allowing Yugi to slip into the lead on corner exit.

Edd has much better luck through his next hairpin turn, sliding through like a knife on butter, and pulling even with Yugi going into lap 2.

But then Yugi pulls ahead through the third set of turns, as Edd botches his next hairpin turn while he nails his next sweeping curves, enabling him to get ahead once more heading back into the crossover.

Yugi, however, slips on his final hairpin turn. Edd, meanwhile, gets through his sweeping curves perfectly, and the two end up in a dead heat going towards the line, towards the possible coup de grace for the Nations Cup...

"I... I don't believe it! I won! WE WON!" Sure enough, Edd has indeed nipped Yugi Moto at the line by two-hundredths of a second, and with that, the United States defeats Japan in the final round to secure the victory in the Nations Cup.

With the American fans in the stands going bonkers, Edd waves to them as he does his victory lap. Then he parks his Audi back in the pit area;

"YOU DID IT, DOUBLE D!" Just as soon as he gets out of the car, Edd is suddenly swarmed by his best friends Ed and Eddy and his girlfriend Nazz, and they all pull him in for a massive group hug. While said hug only lasts for a few seconds, Edd's feelings of pride massively eclipse that as they pull apart.

"Oh, I'm so proud of you, Double D!" Nazz beams as she hugs Edd and kisses him hard on the lips.

"A big hug for the winner!" Ed proclaims as he bearhugs Edd, practically crushing him.

"Sockhead, I know this sounds strange coming from me," Eddy smirks as he claps Edd's shoulder, "but I've never been prouder to be your pal!"

"WOO-HOO! U.S.A! U.S.A! U.S.A!" Suddenly, the Simpsons, led by Homer, all arrive on the scene, whooping and yelling as if they were all in an asylum. They're methods of congratulating Edd prove to be even more awkwardly flattering; Bart licks and spits on his hand and then shakes Edd's hand, leaving it contaminated with Bart's germs. But before Edd the neat freak can reprimand Bart, he is suddenly smash-hugged and kissed on both cheeks by Marge and Lisa; his face flushes red and everyone snickers at him as Homer suddenly picks him up and sits him on his shoulders.

"Stop being so modest, man!" Homer goads. "You just won an international sporting event for the greatest nation in the world - show some pride, dude! Now c'mon; the podium awaits!"

...

Without even bothering to take a car, Homer runs out of the pit area and across the stadium, carrying Edd on his shoulders the whole way. Edd tries some more to be modest, but the sights and sounds of the fans cheering for him, waving American flags, is too much, and he gives in, crying out, "WOO-HOO, U.S.A!" as Homer carries him over to the podium.

Already standing on the victory podium are Ash Ketchum and Yugi Moto on the second-place spot, and Aelita Stones and Jeremy Belpois on the third-place spot. Homer sets Edd down on the first-place spot on the top, catches his breath, and then joins Edd on the top spot on the victory podium.

It is arguably the grandest sight to see thus far in the history of cartoon racing. Homer, Edd, Ash, Yugi, Aelita and Jeremy all stand proudly on the podium before their applauding fans, with the American, Japanese and French flags prominently displayed over their heads. But the most triumphant of the bunch are the Americans Homer and Edd; their hearts are both about ready to jump out of their respective chests with joy as "The Star-Spangled Banner" plays on the stadium speakers, celebrating the winning nation.

Then come the trophies; as the American national anthem comes to an end, top officials from the Indian government come up to podium, each holding a trophy. Aelita and Jeremy, representing France, are both presented with third-place trophies, which they both give kisses to before happily giving one to each other. Then the second-place trophies are presented to the two drivers from Japan - Ash Ketchum and Yugi Moto, and they both hold their trophies high, with Pikachu standing on top of Ash's trophy and cheering his little heart out. And then finally, Homer Simpson and Edd, representing the United States of America, are presented the winner's trophy, both of which are bigger than all the others. As they hold their trophies up for all to see, Homer says to Edd, "What did I tell ya? I told you we'd show everyone here what's up, and we did!" only adding to the huge grin on Edd's face.

And then comes the wildest part of any podium celebration. A stadium hand walks up to the podium, wheeling with him a cart with six large bottles of champagne on it. Aelita, Jeremy, Ash, Yugi, Homer and Edd are each handed a bottle; they all shake them up, and then uncork them. Torrents of champagne erupt out of the bottles like Mt. St. Helen's; the six competitors all spray each other mercilessly with the sweet alcoholic beverage, covering each other from head to foot. Then finally, when the champagne is settled down, they all drink down what's left, topping off a job well done in the first-ever Cartoon Race of Champions Nations Cup for each of them...


	9. Conception In Calcutta

Now for the first side story of the season, which starts right after the victory celebrations of the Nations Cup.

With their trophies in hand, and their bodies soaking wet from the champagne they all spread each other, Aelita Stones, Jeremy Belpois, Ash Ketchum, Yugi Moto, Homer Simpson and Edd all head back into the pit area, with a certain degree of victory flowing through all of their souls, as Aelita and Jeremy took 3rd place for France, Ash and Yugi claimed 2nd place for Japan, and Homer and Edd won out for the United States.

"Hey, Ash?" Yugi says to his teammate. "Listen, we may not have won the thing, but, it was still very fun driving with you."

"Yeah, same here!" Ash grins. "But we still have the actual Race of Champions tomorrow night. Except then, it's every driver for themselves - I don't know how that'll turn out!"

"Oh, it should be just as great," Yugi says admirably. "And just so you know, it would be an honor to race against you in that event."

"Amen!" Ash exclaims. "Pound it!" With that, Ash and Yugi bump fists, and then;

"PIKA!" Without warning, Pikachu leaps from Ash's shoulder onto Yugi's shoulder, savagely licking his cheek and inciting really awkward giggling from him. "Take it easy, Pikachu," he laughs, "you're gonna make me drop this trophy!"

But Pikachu simply giggles, gives Yugi one more lick, and then leaps back over onto Ash's shoulder. "Well, I suppose I'll see you in the actual Race of Champions, Ash," Yugi says.

"Yeah, see ya!" Ash says, and the two shake on it and part ways.

Ash then heads out of the pit area towards his personal scooter, parked just outside the stadium. He has just packed his new trophy into the luggage trailer attached to the back of the thing when suddenly;

"ASH!" May, Ash's girlfriend, makes a sudden, surprise appearance, ambushing Ash with a huge smash-hug, accompanied by a big, long kiss on the lips while Pikachu tries to look away.

"Oh, man, you and Yugi did so great out there, Ash!" May marvels. "Especially you. Oh, and you were so close at the end!"

"Yeah, I really thought I could beat Homer at the line there," Ash shrugs. "But at the end, he got me, and then Double D got Yugi... oh well. At least I still got a trophy to show for it."

"Yeah," May smiles as she slings an arm around him, "but I just know you'll get 'em all in the actual Race of Champions!"

"I'd like to think so," Ash replies uneasily, "but just look at all the people I'll be up against! Who knows what sort of sick powers they'll use on each other... and me?"

"Oh relax, Ash!" May chuckles. "Double D and Homer don't have any weird powers of their own, and look what they've accomplished! And besides, you have Pikachu to back you up, don't you?"

"PIKACHU!"

"Yeah, you're right," Ash says with a grin on his face. "Now come on, I'm tired, let's go back to our room."

"Oh, alright," May says as she and Pikachu mount onto Ash's scooter.

Shortly thereafter, they all arrive at their rented hotel room on the outskirts of Calcutta. Using whatever energy he last left after the long night of racing, Ash lifts up the trophy from his scooter's trailer and hauls it in his arms up into their room, where he places it prominently onto the dresser for display.

"Ah, yes, that looks nice, wouldn't you say?" Ash muses.

"Yeah, I'd say so," May smiles with a kiss on Ash's lips.

"Anyway," replies Ash. "I gotta take a shower - I'm still covered in champagne from that podium celebration."

So, while Pikachu heaves his exhausted body under the bed and drifts off to sleep, Ash heads into the bathroom, strips naked, turns on the shower and steps into it, cleansing his body from the champagne slathered onto it, while May lies on the bed waiting for him, thinking about his relationship with him;

"Oh, that Ash," she muses to herself. "I love that guy... and come to think of it, I've never thought I'd love him this much, nor did I think I'd ever really want as much with him as I do..."

Before long, Ash emerges from the shower, wearing nothing but a towel around his waist, showcasing his now sparkly-clean body as he dries his hair. He then strolls back into the bedroom, where he is greeted by a cat-call from May.

"Lookin' hot, Ash!" May seductively croons.

"Oh please," Ash shrugs, "I was just getting the champagne off me, that's all."

"Oh, sure..." May grins. Suddenly, before Ash can think twice, May slips off her shirt to reveal her B-cup breasts and then gets up and charges at Ash, locking her half-naked body up against his almost-naked body and kissing him ferociously on the lips.

Startled as Ash may be, May does not let go. She only assaults him even more with her love as she kisses him even harder, easing her tongue in as she unties his towel, leaving him fully naked as she tackles him to the bed, pinning him.

But by this point, Ash has gotten in the mood as he starts to return May's kisses, making her giggle as he liberally applies a series of them all across her neck and shoulders.

"Aww, you like that, May?" Ash grins.

As her form of an answer, May simply pushes herself up so that her breasts are hovering right above his face.

"Well, go on, Ash-y boy!" May winks. Knowing exactly what she's referring to, Ash envelops his lips around May's nipple and starts to suckle, almost as if he were a baby breastfeeding, smearing the tit with his saliva and making May almost shudder as he sucks on it.

"Aw, Ash, you're my baby!" May croons as Ash switches over to the other breast and suckles on it. While he does so, May reaches for her shorts and slips them off, along with her panties. Fluid drips from her vagina onto the bed as it becomes more and more wet, showing just how horny Ash has made her yet.

"Oh yeah, come on, eat me up!" May moans as she positions herself upright, with her genitals right over Ash's face.

"I love a good midnight snack!" Ash winks as he brushes aside May's cubic hair and starts to lick May's clitoris.

"YES!" May cries out, signaling Ash to lick harder and faster, which he does, prompting a series of "oh-oh-ah-uh-oh!" moans from May, which grow only louder and more entranced as Ash begins suckling on the clit...

"AAAAAAHH!" This proves to be too much for May to hold back, as in no time, her walls contract and she reaches her climax.

"Oh, it is so on now!" Ash proclaims as he reaches over to his bedside drawer for the condoms.

"Ah-ah-ah! Not this time, Ash!" May says as he slaps his hand away from the drawer.

"But May... the condom..."

"I told you, not this time. Now give yourself to me!" May snarls. And before Ash can protest, May instantly merges herself with Ash, riding his member furiously.

With each thrust, Ash moans indistinctly as the sensation of May's walls squeezing, caressing and massaging his entire manhood pulsates throughout his entire body and soul. All the while, May rides him only harder, saying things like, "Oh, Ash, baby! Oh, Ash! That's it, give yourself to me, baby!"

Three minutes later, May is still giving it to Ash, and at this point, both of their moans become more and more stressed until...

"AAAAAHH!" they both cry out as May's wall contract once more, whilst Ash's manhood erupts, shooting a huge, warm, sticky, fertile load inside of May.

Immediately afterwards, Ash lays back to relax, clearly satisifed with this session. But that's when May suddenly brings her lips to Ash's ear and whispers something he most certainly did not see coming;

"I want your child, Ash."

"WHAT?!"

At first, Ash cannot believe what he just heard. But then, he remembers back to right before May hit the home run with him, when she slapped his hand away from the drawer with the condoms in it.

"Wait, so is THAT why you wouldn't let me use a condom?! Honestly, of all the-"

But before Ash can go on any real tirade, May stops him with a quick kiss on the lips, and then says, "Listen, Ash. I love you. With all my heart, and everything else. I want everything with you, Ash, and that includes your offspring. Just promise that you won't leave me? I know that it'll be a rough road with a child as a passenger, but I assume you won't leave me hanging like all the other deadbeat dads?"

For a brief time, Ash's mind becomes a blank slate as he tries to process all that he has just heard, what with how much May loves him, and with how much he loves her back. And as he thinks it through, he realizes maybe he wants just as much with May as she wants with him...

"Wait, are you implying that I'm a deadbeat dad?" Ash breaks in.

"Of course not!" assures May. "Why would I assume something like that?".

"I don't know," Ash affirms, "because I'm sure as hell no deadbeat dad! I'll stand by you no matter what... er, there is just one thing I need to know, first."

"What's that, Ash?"

And Ash asks, "Are you absolutely sure that this is what you want. You yourself pointed out how rough the road would be would a child riding with us."

And with a firm kiss on his lips, May says, "Positive. I love you, Ash Ketchum!"

With these words, Ash forgets everything else and falls into his lover's arms, saying, "I love you too, May."

And so, exhausted from all that has transpired this night, Ash and May snuggle up to each other and fall peacefully asleep, both of them, especially May, looking forward to what the future has in store for them...

...

**Alright, now that that's out of the way, the actual Race of Champions, which will feature every driver for themselves, will be coming up next!**

** Just like with the Nations Cup, we will start with a group stage, which will of course be a round robin for each group. The top two drivers from each group will advance to the knockout stage, starting with the round of 16. And the groups will be organized as follows;**

**GROUP A**

** Baljeet Tjinder**

** Jeremy Belpois**

** Raimundo Pedrosa**

** Yugi Moto**

**GROUP B**

** Aelita Stones**

** Amy Wong**

** Fanny Fulbright**

** Toki Wartooth**

**GROUP C**

** Emperor Kuzco**

** Homer Simpson**

** Will Vandom**

** Zigfried Von Schroeder**

**GROUP D**

** Ash Ketchum**

** Bloom**

** Ferb Fletcher**

** Nikki Wong**

**GROUP E**

** Edd**

** Guy "SheZow" Hamdon**

** Marik Ishtar**

** Skwisgaar Skwigelf**

**GROUP F**

** Chang Wufei**

** Jose Carioca**

** Nigel Uno**

** Rikochet**

**GROUP G**

** Apu Nahasapeemapetilon**

** Artha Penn**

** Groundskeeper Willie**

** Kronk**

**GROUP H**

** Heinz Doofenshmirtz**

** Ishizu Ishtar**

** Manny Rivera**

** Wallabee Beatles**

** Groups A & B coming up in the next chapter...!**


	10. Race of Champions (Groups A & B)

Yugi Moto is one of the drivers slated to kick off the group stage in the actual Race of Champions. He straps into a KTM X-Bow and fires up the engine just as he spots his girlfriend, Tea Gardner, running towards him.

"Hey, Yugi!" she says as she reaches the side of Yugi's car. "I shouldn't have to tell you to be careful out there, but I will anyway. But still, I know you're gonna do great!"

Yugi simply smiles as Tea gives him a kiss for good luck, and then he drives his X-Bow out onto the track, lining up at the line on the outer course. Beside him on the inner course, also in a KTM X-Bow, is his opponent, Baljeet Tjinder.

Before either of them know it, the green flag turns them loose, and they take off, with both of them sliding through their first turns with incredible ease.

Then suddenly, Baljeet has a nasty slip-up through the chicane, causing the Indian home crowd to gasp, afraid that he might crash. He does save it, but Yugi now has a sizeable lead going into lap 2.

For the rest of the lap, as hard as Baljeet runs, he just cannot catch back up to Yugi; thus, Yugi Moto wins this round by a landslide, and he throws his arms up in victory as the fans half-heartedly applaud.

...

Yugi and Baljeet clear the racetrack, and they're replaced by two Toyota GT86's, with Jeremy Belpois lined up on the inner course, and Raimundo Pedrosa lined up on the outer course. Their engines rev furiously for a moment, and then the green flag sees them off.

Raimundo slides a bit through his first sweeping curves, allowing Jeremy to acquire just a slight lead heading into the next set of turns. But then Raimundo gets through his next hairpin turn perfectly, and they both wind up even going into lap 2.

Through the third set of turns, the two competitors remain even, and they go through the crossover still even. But then Jeremy ends up braking really late heading into his final hairpin turn, having to slow up almost to a complete stop just to keep the car off the wall.

"YES!" Raimundo cheers as he crosses the stripe victorious. "That's one down!"

**GROUP A STANDINGS**

** Raimundo Pedrosa (1-0)**

** Yugi Moto (1-0)**

** Baljeet Tjinder (0-1)**

** Jeremy Belpois (0-1)**

Raimundo drives the car back around and lines back up on the inner course, ready for another round. Joining him on the outer course is his next opponent, Baljeet Tjinder, now in an identical Toyota GT86.

Quickly, the green flag sends them on their way. Both cars get quite loose through their first turns, but they stay in one piece and keep going into the crossover, still even.

"OH!" gasps the crowd as the unthinkable happens; Baljeet's car blows the right-front tire, and cannot turn at all, leading him to crash head-on into the wall going into the hairpin. Thus, the race is called, with Raimundo Pedrosa as the winner, and Baljeet Tjinder with his 2nd loss.

...

After the wreckage and competitors are cleared from the racing surface, on come two Ariel Atoms onto the track. The one on the inner course is driven by Yugi Moto, and the one on the outer course is driven by Jeremy Belpois.

The two cars take off like shots under the guise of the green flag. Jeremy gets the jump on Yugi, and Yugi has a slip-up through his first turn, just enough for Jeremy to take the lead by a car length going into the crossover.

Things look more bad for Yugi going through the second turn, as Jeremy nails his hairpin turn and pads his lead further. As they go into lap 2, Yugi decides to end this now;

"I SUMMON SUMMONED SKULL IN ATTACK MODE! NOW, TAKE OUT THAT OTHER CAR!"

A grotesque, skeleton-like monster appears from out of nowhere on the rear wing of Yugi's car. The sky over the stadium turns dark and becomes overcast as the monster summons a bolt of lightning from the sky that scores a direct hit on Jeremy's car. Jeremy is at a loss for words as his car, save for the cockpit, explodes in an inferno fireblast. He is okay, but he is out of the race, and Yugi Moto is declared the winner, while Jeremy loses for the 2nd time.

**GROUP A STANDINGS**

** Raimundo Pedrosa (2-0)**

** Yugi Moto (2-0)**

** Baljeet Tjinder (0-2)**

** Jeremy Belpois (0-2)**

With this, the group has effectively been decided. Nonetheless, Yugi drives back around to the starting line, this time in the outer course once again. Another Ariel Atom then drives up and lines up on the inner course, with Raimundo Pedrosa behind the wheel.

They take off as the green flag waves, with Yugi Moto getting the head start. Both of them easily get through their first turns, but Yugi still leads going into the crossover.

Yugi, however, slides awkwardly through his next hairpin turn, almost spinning out entirely. While Raimundo isn't able to take the lead, he does pull even with Yugi heading into lap 2.

But then Raimundo ends up botching his next chicane, almost getting wedged in between the walls. The amount of time it takes for him to get going again allows Yugi to pull way ahead to where he has essentially secured the victory. Thus, Yugi Moto wins and goes undefeated in the group stage, while Raimundo Pedrosa is dealt his first loss.

...

Then comes the last race of Group A between Jeremy Belpois and Baljeet Tjinder - a consolation race of sorts, as they have both effectively been eliminated already. Baljeet lines up on the inner course and Jeremy lines up on the outer course - both are driving Volkswagen Sciroccos.

After some revving of the engines, the green flag flies. Jeremy gets off the line cleanly. Baljeet, on the other hand...

"URRRGGH! NOT AGAIN!" Once again, Baljeet's car blows up its engine, knocking him out of the competition. Another race is called, and Jeremy Belpois is declared the winner. That, however, doesn't help advance him past the group stage;

**GROUP A FINAL STANDINGS**

** Yugi Moto (3-0)***

** Raimundo Pedrosa (2-1)***

** Jeremy Belpois (1-2)**

** Baljeet Tjinder (0-3)**

** (* - Yugi Moto and Raimundo Pedrosa advance to the Round of 16)**

While happy over winning that race, Jeremy is still feeling very down over having been knocked out of the group stage. He dejectedly drives his Volkswagen Scirocco into the pit area, then quickly gets out and rushes to meet his girlfriend Aelita Stones, who has just gotten behind the wheel of an Audi R8, ready to kick off Group B.

"Hey, Jeremy!" Aelita greets him. "Sorry about you being eliminated."

"Oh, it's okay," replies Jeremy, trying to shrug it off. "At least one of us still has a shot to make it past this group stage. Anyway, I'm gonna go grab something to eat. Good luck, Aelita."

Aelita gets a good-luck kiss from Jeremy, then she wheels the Audi out onto the track, lining up at the stripe on the inner course. Beside her on the outer course in an identical Audi R8 is her opponent, Amy Wong. Before either of them know it, the green flag is displayed, and the two cars go thundering off the line.

Aelita gets the jump on Amy, but she ends up in an ugly skid through her first hairpin turn, allowing Amy to close the gap, and the two head into the crossover dead even. Both drivers nail their second set of turns to perfection, sliding through them as if they were still going straight, and they remain even heading into lap 2.

Through the third set of turns, both Aelita and Amy end up getting somewhat loose, but they manage to maintain control, and going out of the turn, they are still even...

"OH, GODDAMMIT!" growls Amy as she botches her final chicane horribly, almost spinning out completely. This gives Aelita the break she needed, as she roars across the finish line as the winner, cheering hysterically as she brings the car back around and into the pit area.

...

Next up for Group B is Fanny Fulbright vs. Toki Wartooth, with Fanny on the outer course and Toki on the inner course, both driving Euro NASCAR cars. After some engine revving, the green flag turns them both loose, with Toki getting ahead of Fanny and holding her off through the first set of turns.

But then Toki suddenly spins out going into the chicane, going around a full 180 degrees. He does manage to turn it around, but not until Fanny is halfway through lap 2, leaving him with no chance. Thus, Fanny Fulbright wins her first race of the round, cockily shouting obscene exclamations in the Irish language as she drives it back around.

**GROUP B STANDINGS**

** Aelita Stones (1-0)**

** Fanny Fulbright (1-0)**

** Amy Wong (0-1)**

** Toki Wartooth (0-1)**

Fanny drives back around and sets back up at the line, this time on the inner course, absolutely raring to go for another round. Joining her on the outer course is her next opponent, Amy Wong, also now driving a Euro NASCAR car and looking to redeem herself after that loss to Aelita Stones.

Without delay, the green flag is dropped, and Fanny and Amy take off, with Fanny edging ahead slightly through the first set of turns. However, she suffers from a nasty slide through her next chicane, and Amy heads into the lead entering lap 2.

Nothing changes through the third set of turns; they both get through adequately and Amy maintains the lead heading into the crossover. But then Fanny gets a spectacular run through her final hairpin turn, pulling even with Amy and making it a drag race...

"YES, YES, I DID IT, I DID IT!" Amy Wong screams as she nips Fanny Fulbright at the line by nine thousandths of a second.

...

Next up is Aelita Stones and Toki Wartooth, both driving RoC Cars. Aelita is on the outer course and Toki is on the inner course. The green flag quickly flies and turns them loose. Somehow, Toki manages to get a head start on Aelita, but Aelita quickly counters this, not by driving her heart out, but rather by generating a ball of energy in her hand and firing it through her open cockpit at Toki's car;

"NOS! WHAT HAPPENINGS!" Toki cries out as his car is leveled and incapacitated by the energy ball, reduced to a hunk of metal billowing black smoke. With that, the race is called, with Aelita Stones as the race winner and Toki Wartooth effectively out of the competition.

**GROUP B STANDINGS**

** Aelita Stones (2-0)**

** Amy Wong (1-1)**

** Fanny Fulbright (1-1)**

** Toki Wartooth (0-2)**

Aelita goes ahead and drives the car back around to the starting line on the inner course while Toki's car is towed from the racing surface. Then, driving up to the line on the outer course in an identical RoC car, is Aelita's final opponent in the group stage; Fanny Fulbright.

They take off under the guise of the green flag; this time, Aelita gets the head start, and even gets perfect execution of her first hairpin turn, leaving Fanny in her dust going into the crossover...

"NO! DAMMIT!" cries Fanny. Her brakes had failed, and her car ran right into the wall heading into the hairpin, totally destroying the front end of the car. Fanny herself is okay, but as the race is called, Aelita is declared the winner once again.

...

Then comes the last race of Group B, between Amy Wong and Toki Wartooth, who's already effectively eliminated anyways. If Amy wins, she moves on, but if she loses, she'll face Fanny Fulbright in a tiebreaker. But anyway, for this round, Amy is on the inner course and Toki is on the outer course, and they are both driving Toyota GT86's.

They get going at the signal of the green flag, and the whole race is super-tense. Throughout the whole of the two laps, both drivers nail their turns to perfection, remaining seemingly dead even all the way out through their final turns, leaving it up to a drag race down the home stretch;

"WOO-HOO, I DID IT!" By a matter of inches, Amy Wong defeats Toki Wartooth. Hence, she does not have to face Fanny in that tiebreaker and moves on to the next round, whereas Fanny is eliminated. As Toki pounds his fist in disgust on his steering wheel, ashamed to have gone totally winless, Amy is as exhiliarated as ever, looking forward to a much better performance than what she had back in the Nations Cup.

**GROUP B STANDINGS**

** Aelita Stones (3-0)***

** Amy Wong (2-1)***

** Fanny Fulbright (1-2)**

** Toki Wartooth (0-3)**

** (* - Aelita Stones and Amy Wong advance to the Round of 16)**

** Coming up next: Group C (featuring Emperor Kuzco, Homer Simpson, Will Vandom and Zigfried Von Schroeder) and Group D (featuring Ash Ketchum, Bloom, Ferb Fletcher and Nikki Wong).**


	11. Race of Champions (Groups C & D)

Still fresh off of winning the Nations Cup for the United States last night, Homer Simpson, behind the wheel of an Audi R8, gets a good-luck kiss from his wife, Marge, before he wheels the car out onto the track, lining up on the inner course. Alongside him on the inner course is his first opponent in this group stage - in an identical Audi R8, it is Zigfried Von Schroeder.

When the green flag is flown, the two cars go thundering off the line like rockets from a bazooka, and they go sliding rapidly through their first turns like knives on butter, with Homer leading by a bumper going through the crossover. Then on the second set of turns, Zigfried slides real nastily through his chicane, almost crashing, while Homer builds up a solid lead going into lap 2.

"D'OH!" Homer snaps as he brakes late going into his next hairpin turn. As he just keeps it off the wall, Zigfried nails his sweeping curves, pulling even with Homer once more. Through the last set of turns, they remain near-even up to the finish...

"WOO-HOO!" cheers Homer as he hears his name being called as the winner, while Zigfried angrily thrashes around in his car.

...

When the two Audis have left the track, they are replaced by a pair of Toyota GT86's; the one on the inner course is driven by Will Vandom, and the one on the outer course is driven by Emperor Kuzco.

The green flag turns them loose, with Will getting the jump on Kuzco on the start, and retaining the lead through the first set of turns, and padding it some more through their second turns and going into lap 2.

But then Will gets real loose through her next chicane, sending up smoke as she just barely keeps the car from spinning out, allowing Kuzco to pull even with her going into the crossover.

"NO... DAMN IT!" Will Vandom brakes too late going into her last hairpin turn, and just keeps it off of the wall as Emperor Kuzco sails ahead across the finish to take the line.

**GROUP C STANDINGS**

** Emperor Kuzco (1-0)**

** Homer Simpson (1-0)**

** Will Vandom (0-1)**

** Zigfried Von Schroeder (0-1)**

Kuzco triumphantly drives his car back around to the starting line on the inner course for another round; his next opponent, now also driving another Toyota GT86, lined up on the outer course, is Homer Simpson. Before they can think twice, the green flag turns them loose; from the start, through the first set of turns and into the crossover, they remain in a dead heat.

Then in the second set of turns, things get ugly for both of them, with Homer botching his hairpin and Kuzco slipping through his chicane; even though Kuzco does make slight contact with the wall, he keeps going, as does Homer, and they stay even going into lap 2.

Even through the third set of turns, things remain intensely close, with both of them getting through perfectly and staying neck-and-neck through the crossover. But then the tables turn as Kuzco goes into his final hairpin too hard, going around almost a full 90 degrees more than he needed to, totally, as he would say, "throwing off his groove." Homer, meanwhile, says "WOO-HOO!" once more as he wins yet again.

...

Homer and Kuzco leave the race track, and on come two KTM X-Bows; the one on the inner course is driven by WIll Vandom, and the one on the outer course is driven by Zigfried Von Schroeder. Before the green flag can even fly, Will launches a stream of lightning from her hands over to Zigfried's car...

"Vot the- YOU BITCH!" Zigfried cries out as Will's lightning totally shorts his car out, knocking him out of the race and securing the victory for Will Vandom, keeping her hopes alive while destroying his.

**GROUP C STANDINGS**

** Homer Simpson (2-0)**

** Emperor Kuzco (1-1)**

** Will Vandom (1-1)**

** Zigfried Von Schroeder (0-2)**

Will Vandom remains where she is on the starting line while Zigfried's car is towed off of the track, waiting for her final opponent. Before long, Homer Simpson drives out in an identical KTM X-Bow, lining up on the outer course, hellbent on getting a perfect run in this group stage.

The green flag flies, with Will Vandom getting the head start. Homer Simpson slips a good bit on his first sweeping curve, but he gets through the rest of his run perfectly, whereas Will gets her entire run just as perfectly, hence she holds a sizeable lead going into lap 2.

But henceforth, things start to look up for Homer and down for Will, as the latter has a nasty slide through her next sweeping curve, allowing the former to get within half a car length going into the crossover.

"No, no, NO!" wails Will as her brakes fail, leading her to run head-on into the wall going into the final hairpin, taking her out and leading to one, more big "WOO-HOO!" from Homer Simpson as he crosses the line, officially making it through the group stage undefeated.

...

When Homer has left and the wreckage from Will's car is cleared, on come two Volkswagen Sciroccos onto the track; the one on the inner course is driven by Zigfried Von Schroeder, who has already been effectively eliminated, and the one on the outer course is driven by Emperor Kuzco, who will move on IF he wins this race.

The green flag turns them loose, and throughout the whole thing, they execute their turns to perfection, remaining even throughout lap 1 and all the way until near the end of lap 2...

"OH YEAH!" bellows Kuzco as he nips Zigfried Von Schroeder at the line by a mere inch, officially getting himself past the group stage.

**GROUP C FINAL STANDINGS**

** Homer Simpson (3-0)***

** Emperor Kuzco (2-1)***

** Will Vandom (1-2)**

** Zigfried Von Schroeder (0-3)**

** (* - Homer Simpson and Emperor Kuzco advance to the Round of 16)**

While the results of the last race are being cleaned up, Ash Ketchum, driving in Group D, just gets into an Ariel Atom when his girlfriend May comes running up to the car, calling his name.

"Hey, May!" Ash grins. "Come to wish me luck?"

"Well, of course!" May giggles. Her face then gets more serious as she whispers, "And you have no idea how proud I'll be of you when you win this, OR how proud our child will be." She winks.

"Oh, I'll make sure of that!" Ash affirms as May pecks him on the lips. He then fires up the Ariel Atom's engine and rolls out onto the racetrack, setting himself up on the outer course at the start/finish line; on the inner course sits another Ariel Atom, driven by his opponent for this race, Ferb Fletcher.

The cars take off under the guise of the green flag. Ferb gets the head start and jumps out ahead of Ash - but Ash wastes no time trying to play catch-up;

"Pikachu, Thunderbolt!"

"Pika...CHU!"

Pikachu's Thunderbolt launches out and devastates Ferb Fletcher's car, shorting out all of its circuits and reducing it to a metal hunk billowing black smoke; thus, the race is called, and Ash Ketchum is declared the winner by default.

...

Once Ferb's car is towed away, on come two RoC Cars. One, on the inner course, is driven by Nikki Wong, and the other, on the outer course, is driven by Bloom.

The green flag sees them off, with Bloom getting the jump on Nikki; Nikki then severely blows her first hairpin turn, almost doing a full 360, allowing Bloom to build up a sizeable lead going into the crossover.

From there on out, nothing more interesting happens. Bloom maintains her massive lead all the way through to the checkered flag, therefore winning her first race in this group stage.

**GROUP D STANDINGS**

** Ash Ketchum (1-0)**

** Bloom (1-0)**

** Ferb Fletcher (0-1)**

** Nikki Wong (0-1)**

As Nikki Wong retreats back into the pits, Bloom drives her car back around to the start/finish line on the inner course, ready for the next race; her opponent, on the outer course in another identical RoC Car, is Ash Ketchum.

They set off on the green flag's signal, with both Ash and Bloom botching their first turns, but still staying even going through the crossover.

The two drivers get through their second turns with much better execution, but they are still near-even going into lap 2, with Ash maintaining a slight lead.

But then Bloom gets quite loose through her next sweeping curve, allowing Ash to get the upper hand... that is, until Bloom reacts by launching a fireball from her hand...

"PIKACHU, RUN FOR IT!" Ash and Pikachu dive out of the car as it catches fire, right as it becomes entirely consumed by the flames. They do escape serious injury, but the race is called with Bloom as the winner by default.

...

After the remains of Ash's car are cleared from the track, a pair of Euro NASCAR cars line up at the starting line, one driven by Ferb Fletcher (on the inner course) and one driven by Nikki Wong (on the outer course).

The two cars take off under the guise of the green flag, with them both slipping easily through their first turns and remaining near-even through the first set of turns and into the crossover.

"Oh, BLAST!" As Ferb approaches the chicane, his car blows the left-rear, sending him spinning head-on into the wall and knocking him out of the race, thus making Nikki Wong the winner by default.

**GROUP D STANDINGS**

** Bloom (2-0)**

** Ash Ketchum (1-1)**

** Nikki Wong (1-1)**

** Ferb Fletcher (0-2)**

When Bloom's wrecked car is removed from the racing surface, Nikki Wong drives her car back around to the starting line on the inner course. Lined up on the outer course is Ash Ketchum, in a Euro NASCAR car just like hers. Whoever wins this race moves on to the next round, while the loser will be eliminated.

The green flag waves them off, with Ash Ketchum getting the jump on Nikki Wong, only padding his lead further through the first set of turns. He then slips up a bit through his next hairpin, getting just a bit loose, but still maintains a good lead heading into lap 2.

Ash then has a nasty slide through the hairpin after that one, sending up a large cloud of smoke as he struggles to catch it. He does keep it from spinning out, but Nikki Wong is now right up alongside him through the crossover.

They both remain near-even through their final turns, leaving it all up to a drag race down the homestretch...

"No! We lost!" cries Ash. Pikachu simply hangs his head - it is true. Nikki Wong has upset Ash Ketchum by a mere hundredth of a second. "Take that, you vermin!" Nikki smirks as she drives aroud victorious.

...

And now for the final race of Group D, between Bloom (on the inner course), who has already techincally advanced to the next round, and Ferb Fletcher (on the outer course), who has already been effectively eliminated. Both are driving Audi R8's - as much as Bloom loves driving this monster of a vehicle aroud the stadium, she sees no point in risking being upset as Ash Ketchum just did, so before the green flag can even be displayed, she shoots a fireball from her hand out her car's window and towards Ferb's car...

The crowd gasps as Ferb Fletcher's car is suddenly engulfed in searing heat and scorching flames, licking the paint right off of the car. Ferb manages to evacuate just in time, right before the fire finds the fuel tank and causes the car to explode in an inferno of showering sparks and debris. With that, Bloom has won, and Group D has just officially been completed.

**GROUP D FINAL STANDINGS**

** Bloom (3-0)***

** Nikki Wong (2-1)***

** Ash Ketchum (1-2)**

** Ferb Fletcher (0-3)**

** (* - Bloom and Nikki Wong advance to the Round of 16)**

** Coming up next: Group E (featuring Edd, Guy "SheZow" Hamdon, Marik Ishtar and Skwisgaar Skwigelf) and Group F (featuring Chang Wufei, Jose Carioca, Nigel Uno and Rikochet).**


End file.
